


Lorenz Hellman Gloucester Swipes Right

by lalahss



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes, Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Art, Coffee Shops, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dogs, Dry Humping, F/M, First Dates, First Kiss, Food Porn, Ice Skating, Modern Era, Rating May Change, Sexual Tension, tinder au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:42:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 29,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23575603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lalahss/pseuds/lalahss
Summary: The adventures of a certain Lorenz Hellman Gloucester on Tinder, at the behest of Claude, to meet the woman who's perfect for him. Who will he match with next?
Relationships: Lorenz Hellman Gloucester/Claude von Riegan, Lorenz Hellman Gloucester/Florina, Maribelle/Lorenz Hellman Gloucester, Paora | Palla/Lorenz Hellman Gloucester
Comments: 15
Kudos: 27





	1. Noble Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> GOODNESS I hope I can commit to this series! Oh well... here goes nothing!
> 
> I think Lorenz is a really interesting character, and he doesn't get enough love. Well... he's going to, right now!

“What _is_ this?” Lorenz looked at his phone screen with disgust as Claude smirked.

“It’s Tinder, Lorenz.” Claude had pulled up a profile he’d made of Lorenz, complete with the best photos of him he could find on his Camera Roll. It wasn’t hard, given Lorenz’s vanity, but it was hilarious to Claude that Lorenz actually had some of the photos on his phone. There was one of him surrounded by rose petals on his bed (who did that?!), one featuring himself wearing a sheet like a toga, and a full nude that looked as if he’d had it professionally shot. Ah, Lorenz…

“Yes, I know, but why is _that_ the photo you’ve chosen?” He pointed to the first photo, one of him in one of Ferdinand’s button-up shirts with the flamingos on it, and Claude snorted.

“It was the only semi-normal one of you I could find.” Claude swiped through the photos, and Lorenz nodded and cringed in equal measure.

“I fear I will not find a woman worthy of my time with photos like these.” He flipped back to one of him at one of Claude’s parties, sitting by a bonfire on a beach. “That makes me look like a frat boy!”

“Rest assured, with hair like yours, nobody will think you’re a frat boy.” Claude gave his friend a sly smile, and Lorenz sighed.

“For the last time, my hair is perfectly normal.” He fingered through his plum-coloured hair, and sighed. “The photos are fine.”

“What about the bio?” Claude swiped down the page, and Lorenz scrutinised the phone screen.

“Hello there, my name is Lorenz. Looking for a serious relationship only. Lover of fine wines, Stravinsky, and Animal Crossing. Wait–” Lorenz frowned at Claude, and Claude only laughed in response. “Hmph. Nobody’s supposed to know that.”

“It’s fine! Girls love that!” Lorenz gave Claude a look, and Claude quietened. “Right. Okay. Finish reading it!”

“There’s an anthem. ‘Purple Rain’ by Prince?” He gave Claude a confused look. “I don’t know that song.”

“You’re supposed to be funny with your song choice, as well as kind of serious. It’s a good song!”

Lorenz looked at him disbelievingly. “Can you change it to Satie’s First Gymnopedie?”

“Okay.” Claude took the phone, and changed his anthem to ‘Never Gonna Give You Up,’ a smirk on his face. “Anyway, you’ll meet some good girls on here! The selection here at the University of Askr is really good.”

“The selection, ugh…” Lorenz groaned. “I haven’t met anyone up to my standards yet.”

“To be fair, we’ve been on campus for two weeks, and you do nothing but go to classes. You haven’t been to the clubs, you haven’t been to the orientation events, you haven’t done anything. It’s natural you haven’t met anyone who isn’t from Fodlan.”

Lorenz sighed. “I talked to two men in my lectures, and they were complete imbeciles.”

“You’re doing a Classics degree. Of course there are idiots taking it.” Claude sighed. “Now, if you took engineering, phew! The girls in there are reeeeally—”

“Claude.” Lorenz huffed. “Weren’t you going to find me girls?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Claude gave him his phone back. “Hit the done button, and then you’re in!”

Lorenz hit the ‘done’ button, and was immediately greeted to the face of a girl with blue hair. “Aah! A woman!”

Claude snorted, and looked down at her. “Oh, I’ve seen her before. Eirika! She seems nice, she’s doing a commerce degree.”

“Where did you meet her?” Lorenz asked, looking at her smiling face on his screen.

“Tap on the photo, and you can see her profile.” Lorenz tapped it, and was immediately greeted to her profile. He scrolled down as Claude spoke, “I met her at the grocery store, she was buying cooking supplies for her kitchen.”

“Ah, a woman who can cook!” Lorenz grinned. “Just my type.”

“And then I saw her at the club with her super cute friend Tana… hey, Lorenz!” Lorenz had swiped left immediately, and Claude sighed. “You gotta give them a chance… just because they go clubbing doesn’t mean they’re a bad person!”

“Ursula, 35… Claude, why is there a 35 year old showing up in my Tinder?”

“I wanted your parameters to be wide enough that in case someone attractive showed up, you could swipe right!” Lorenz swiped left, and Claude sighed. “You can’t be picky, Lorenz… There aren’t a ton of people in Askr…”

“I want a girlfriend who isn’t an imbecile, Claude.” Lorenz looked at the next picture. “Huh. She looks nice.”

Claude leaned over his shoulder. “Elise, 18… She looks way too young to be on here!” He frowned. “Swipe left.”

Lorenz tapped on her photo, and was greeted to her profile. He scrolled through her photos, and Claude grimaced. “Yeah. No way she’s 18. Swipe left already!”

“Fine, fine.” Lorenz swiped left, and another girl came up. “Tsubasa, 18.” He scrolled down, and was greeted to a cheery profile. “She seems… fine.”

“I haven’t seen her anywhere on campus…” Claude peered at his screen, and grinned. “You gotta swipe right!”

“Fine.” Lorenz swiped right, and the next profile came up. “Guinivere, 26… from Bern! She’s foreign…”

“Bern is literally not that far away.” Claude facepalmed.

“A postgrad student doing political science… interesting!” Lorenz grinned. “She seems worthy of my time.” He swiped right.

“That’s… good…” Claude sighed. “Right. Should I leave you to it?”

“Oh, don’t go! I want to know if these girls go to the clubs.” Lorenz showed him the screen. “Charlotte looks sensible though… do you know her?”

“I know Charlotte. She’s doing health sciences.” Claude looked conflicted, and Lorenz raised an eyebrow. “She… isn’t your type.”

“Hmm.” Lorenz narrowed his eyes. “How so?”

“She… uh, she really isn’t.” Claude winced. “Oh, and whatever you do, don’t click the Onlyfans link in her profile.”

“Right…” Lorenz swiped left, and looked at the next photo. “Veronica. 18, studying physics, says she enjoys logic puzzles.”

“Ooh!” Claude grinned when he saw her. “She seems like she’s your type. So serious!”

“I like a woman who knows how to have fun.” He smiled slightly as he swiped right. “Logic puzzles are _very_ fun, I’ll have you know. Ah, Tethys… she’s a dancer?”

“I’ve never seen her before in my life.” Claude patted Lorenz on the back. “Anyway! I trust your judgement, and I have an assignment I’m supposed to be finishing.”

“Ah. Is this you bowing out for the night?” Lorenz frowned as he swiped left. “Guunthra, likes cold weather and warm snuggles…” He swiped right. “I do enjoy your company.”

Claude didn’t want to say it, but he approached Tinder much differently to Lorenz. Instead of being methodical, he swiped right on anyone who looked down to… clown. Lorenz’s approach was, while interesting, difficult for him to sit through.

“You know how engineering gets… kinda busy, you know? I’ll check on you later, okay? See ya!” Claude was gone in an instant, and Lorenz was left with himself, and his phone.

“Fine, Claude. Let’s see… Mae? Swipe left, Cynthia? Swipe right… Eir? She looks a bit unwell, but… swipe right… Flora? Right…

* * *

“Claude.” Claude was awoken from his slumber by Lorenz at the door of his room. “It’s eleven at night, and I’m out of people to swipe on.”

“That’s great Lorenz… wait. What?!”

“I’m out. As in, I’ve run out of swipes.”

Claude quickly shot up from his desk, realising what had happened. “I thought you were being picky!”

“I was, but there’s more than a few eligible bachelorettes on Tinder, it appears… and some of them have that OnlyFans link!” Lorenz beamed, and Claude cringed.

“Did you… click on it?” 

“No, you told me not to.” Lorenz smiled. “But there were so many kinds of women… some who seemed wholly innocent, some who looked like tarts (I swiped left on them, don’t worry), some who seemed incredibly wise, others who looked like idiots (who I didn’t swipe left on)…” Lorenz walked up to him, and put his hand on his shoulder. “Thank you Claude.”

“Do you have any matches?” Claude asked, frowning.

“What’s a match?” Lorenz asked, passing Claude his phone.

“It’s when you both swipe right on each other… let me check yours.” Claude opened the matches section, and saw nothing. “Well… maybe the girls aren’t on at eleven on a Tuesday night.”

“Maybe not.” Lorenz was still grinning, and Claude sighed.

“If you get a match, wake me up, and I’ll get you on a date.” Claude gave his friend a grin, and Lorenz returned it slyly.

“I’m getting into the dating scene,” Lorenz said coolly, “and those women will not know what hit them! Lorenz Hellman Gloucester is ready to get amongst it.”

He really thinks he’s being smooth, Claude thought to himself. “Yes, you are.” He gave Lorenz a pat on his shoulder, and then pushed him towards the door. “And I have an assignment to finish.”

“Good night Claude!” Lorenz said, a smile on his face. “I can’t wait to see who matches with me!”

If anyone does, Claude thought to himself, you’ll be lucky, you big dork.

* * *

“CLAUDE!” Lorenz yelled throughout their tiny apartment, at seven in the morning. Claude groaned as he heard his friend, before remembering that Lorenz had an eight-am, and likely did something stupid that warranted his attention.

“On my way,” he sleepily called out, rolling off his chair and onto his floor. Maybe his assignment was kicking his butt. Maybe it was not. Maybe it was irrelevant if Lorenz had run out of moisturiser, and was intent on keeping him awake. He got up, made his way to the door, but before he could open it Lorenz burst into his room, a wide smile on his face. “What is i–”

“I got a match!”


	2. Florina's First Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lorenz goes on his first date with Florina, who is getting over her extreme shyness.

Florina was, by all accounts, terrified for her date. Her sister Farina had dolled her up, but she was still nervous. Her friend Eliwood had been on some Tinder dates, and told her it could be fun. Her other friend Lyn had laughed, saying Florina didn’t need to worry about dating, but it planted a seed in Florina’s mind. That night, she made herself a Tinder profile, and swiped right on all the guys who seemed nice. Lorenz, admittedly, had stuck out to her. His description made him sound very fancy, and his photos all looked impeccable. By all accounts, he was the _perfect guy_. And that made her petrified.

He’d asked her if she wanted to go on a date to a local cafe, and she’d agreed to, wondering what you were supposed to do on a date. Eliwood was no help, saying she should be herself, and Farina said she could try asking Lorenz if he wanted her Switch code. Yes, he played Animal Crossing, but that seemed like a big step! He could see her playing Splatoon if they became friends, and what if he didn’t like Splatoon?

“Then he’s not worth it, Florina.” A slap on the back, and soon Florina was timidly on her way to the 30th Street Cafe.

She arrived at the cafe a few minutes early, and saw him at a table outside, with just the right amount of sun across his face. She clenched her fists, took a deep breath, and went up to him. The minute he noticed her, his eyes lit up, and a smile worked its way across his face. Her heart beat a bit faster, and she scuttled over to him.

“H-hello! I’m Florina,” she said, holding out her hand. Gosh, why was she so awkward?!

“Hello Florina, I’m Lorenz.” He took her hand, and kissed it across the table. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He got up, pulled out the chair where she would be, and as she sat down, he chuckled. “You’re positively adorable, Florina.”

“O-oh! Thank you!” She smiled, and replied, “You’re like a Disney Prince.”

“Thank you.” His face was warm, and she could feel her cheeks warming. “Is there anything you’d like to eat?”

“Oh, uh…” She looked down at the menu below her, and it seemed to spin before her. What did people order on dates?! Eliwood’s voice, telling her to be herself, came into her head, and she smiled at Lorenz. “I’m alright with anything! Anything but pasta, really…”

“Do you not like pasta?” Lorenz’s voice was warm, and Florina wondered what he was thinking. Did he like pasta?

“Uh… it’s not something you should eat on a first date apparently! It can be a bit messy…”

Lorenz laughed, a warm laugh that went straight to Florina’s heart. “That’s a sensible thought. My roommate would bluster on without a second thought, honestly, but that’s admirable.”

“I can make great pasta dishes for my family! It is messy though, yeah…” Florina smiled, thinking about her last pasta night. Fiora had accidentally gotten her pasta dressing all over her favourite work top, and Farina had laughed at her about it. It was a lovely memory, and she tried to stay in the moment as she described her pasta-night antics to Lorenz.

“Fascinating!” Lorenz was listening attentively throughout the story, and by the end leaned forwards towards Florina. “You must be a talented chef, surely.”

“Oh! I do my best, but I can’t say I’m a master chef by any means!”

“Haha! Don’t be modest dear… for your older sisters to defer cooking to you must mean you’re at least a natural.” He took her hand over the table, and Florina could feel her heart beating through her cheeks. Goodness…

“I also bake sweets too,” she added with a smile. “I make the best apple crumble out of all of my friends!”

“Incredible,” Lorenz replied. “A masterful baker too… Your parents must be so proud.” Florina blushed, and he laughed softly. “Are they?”

“At Christmas, I always end up making most of the dinner, so… I suppose they must be? They don’t often talk much about my cooking skills…” Florina went quiet, and Lorenz picked up on it. “But they do like my chocolate cake!”

“That sounds delicious,” Lorenz said wistfully. “Do yo–”

“Hi!” A perky girl with red hair rounded the corner, with a notebook. “Can I take your order?”

“Ah!” Florina jumped, and Lorenz took her other hand.

“Never fear. Do you know what you want?” Florina nodded, not knowing what she wanted, and Lorenz grinned. “Excellent. Mind if I go first?” She shook her head. “May I please have a couscous salad, and green tea please?”

“Sure thing!” She wrote down the order on her notepad as Florina squinted at the menu. “And how about you, hun?”

“May I please have the…” She looked at the swirly letters on the menu, trying to decipher them. “BLAT sandwich please? And a… berry smoothie?”

“Sure sure!” The redhead took the menus in front of them, and grinned. “It’ll be a little wait, but they’ll be here soon!” 

As she left, Florina giggled, while Lorenz gave her a curious look. She quietened, nervous, but he chuckled. “You’re very wholehearted, dear Florina.”

“Oh!” She knew she was already bright red, but she felt herself go even redder as she lowered her head shyly. “I get… kind of nervous talking to people.”

“You’re doing an excellent job with me,” Lorenz commented kindly, squeezing her hands which he was still holding. “I would say it’s due to my cha– uh, demeanour, but you might not be as shy as you think.”

“Oh! Well…” Florina thought back to when she shrieked in the university quad as a giant guy walked into her. Lyn had to explain to the poor guy that she was naturally skittish, and the guy looked as if he wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. “I have to gather my confidence up sometimes, and it can be a bit hard when I’m off guard.”

“That’s perfectly natural.” Lorenz gave her a smile, and she felt both terrified and comforted. He was so kind… “I’m glad you don’t feel so nervous around me, as your smile is a beautiful occurrence.” His expression was unwaveringly warm as she blushed, and he gently squeezed her hands. “When I see you smile, I wish for nothing more. It is, simply put, beautiful.”

He was charming, that was for sure. “Are you an English major?”

“Close! I do Classical Studies, with a minor of Greek.” He puffed up his chest subconsciously, and Florina felt a laugh bubble up inside her. “The study of the ancients is one I find thoroughly fascinating, and there is so much we can learn from the civilisations gone by.”

“That is!” Florina smiled. “Do you have a favourite era?” That was surely a thing in Classics, right?

“The Golden Age of Greece! The fifth century before Christ, to be exact, and it was a period of prosperity for the Greeks. A time of great advancement, quite like the Renaissance of the 1400’s, in all honesty, but it was also significant in terms of the nationhood of Greece.” He carried on, and even though Florina had no idea what he was talking about, she listened, letting everything flow in through one ear and out the other.

He didn’t stop until their food arrived, at which point he remembered Florina was across from him, listening patiently. “I don’t mean to bore you however!” He let go of her hands to eat their food, and Florina sighed as their hands parted. He did feel so warm…

“You weren’t,” she replied gently, picking up her BLAT.

“What are you studying?” He took a bite of his couscous, humming as he tasted it.

“I’m doing a history major,” she said softly, “and a minor in English.”

“Fascinating! Tell me, what interests you about those subjects?”

“I love the lens of history, in their present and in ours, as well as the researching aspect. I also love analysing viewpoints, and seeing how people interpret events. And with English? I really like Jane Austen novels, and wanted to incorporate my love of reading into my degree.” She grinned, and Lorenz nodded sagely.

“Austen is a fantastic author,” he agreed, “and I absolutely love her novels, even though they are, well, romances.” He took another bite, and gave Florina an appreciative look. “Her and the Bronte sisters were truly revolutionary.”

“Yes!” She giggled, and a smile cracked across Lorenz’s face. “19th century literature is so rewarding to read!”

“I must agree with you on that. That, and 20th century playwrights.”

“I haven’t read any… I’ve mostly stuck to classics.” Lorenz’s eyebrows raised, and Florina felt a bit silly, until he replied.

“I can lend you my books. Some of the plays are classics, like ‘A Streetcar Named Desire,’ but a lot of my favourites are more… obscure.” Florina’s jaw dropped, and Lorenz smiled. “It is wonderful to go on a date with an avid reader.”

“Well!” Florina looked down awkwardly, feeling rather embarrassed. “I don’t have time to read as avidly as I used to, so I feel like a bit of a fake…”

“Nonsense. Nobody has time to read as much as they want to.” Lorenz gave her a comforting smile, and Florina looked up at him, a bit nervous. “I wish I could do nothing but hole myself up in my room, and read book after book.”

“Same here! But… I do like getting out a bit.” She giggled, and Lorenz smiled.

“There was a girl who stayed in the library every lunch reading books, just like you described,” he said, “and she definitely was quite shut-in. It’s good to know you appreciate fresh air though.”

“I like getting out for walks, honestly! Around the university, around the parks, and anywhere really.” Lorenz nodded as she continued. “I sometimes walk my friend Lyn’s dogs, and they can be a bit of a handful!”

“What kind of dogs are they?” Lorenz asked, intrigued.

“They’re rescues, so they’re not really one breed, but they’re very lovable!” Lyn’s dogs… where to start? They were the cutest little mutts, and they loved pats and cuddles just as much as big hunks of beef. Half of Lyn’s paychecks went towards feeding the little monsters!

“They sound lovely.” Lorenz looked slightly taken aback, and Florina wondered if he was afraid of dogs.

“I’m more of a cat person myself, but Lyn’s my best friend, so I’d do anything for her!” Lorenz relaxed, and Florina wondered what that was about.

“I must agree. Cats are far more… calm. My parents had a cat when I was growing up, who was a Chantilly-Tiffany named Glossy. My last name is Gloucester, so they thought it would be funny to name the cat after us. Glossy Gloucester was a wonderful cat though.”

“Gosh…” Florina wasn’t sure whether to be more alarmed at the double barrelled breed name, or the fact Lorenz’s last name was Gloucester. Was he… rich?

“He’d often sit on my lap as a child and shed fur all over me. It definitely made it hard for our housekeeper, but we made it through somehow.” Housekeeper?!

“That sounds lovely!” She said, avoiding her burning question. Was he rich?!

“Glossy passed a year ago, but he lived for a long time, given his breed’s lifespan.” He sighed, and looked down at his lap. Florina extended her (slightly crumby) hand across the table to him, and he took it gently. “But I’m sure Glossy is alright, wherever he is.” He looked up at Florina’s worried expression, and immediately paled. “Goodness, I didn’t mean to bring that up on our first date.”

“Don’t worry,” she comforted, “he sounds lovely.”

“He was indeed. I wish I could get a cat now, but my lease states I can’t have any pets.” Lorenz sighed. “Not even a fish. A fish!”

“That’s sad,” Florina said softly. “We can’t have pets either at our flat, but Lyn can, so she’s lucky.”

“I swear, most landlords around here are brutal when it comes to pets.” He frowned. “I wish they were a bit kinder, put it that way.”

“Same here…” Lorenz finally looked up at Florina, and smiled as he saw her expression. “It’d be nice to have a cat.”

“Agreed! Claude– that is, my roommate, would love a cat. He’s quite soft for most animals.” Lorenz sighed. “He gets all gooey over every dog that walks by our apartment.”

“That’s fair,” Florina said softly, “I’d do the same.”

“Heh.” Lorenz gave her a kind look. “That feels very you, if you don’t mind me saying.” Florina felt panic rise up inside her, but Lorenz continued. “You seem very kindhearted, and if you don’t mind me saying, I think your shyness is a natural byproduct of your gentle disposition. Of course, if the world isn’t as gentle to you as you are to it, you’d need to keep your guard up.”

Florina’s mouth gently opened, then shut. “That’s a sweet way of putting it…”

“Just like you.” Lorenz smiled, and Florina immediately buried her face in her free hand.

“Aaah!” She yelped, and Lorenz laughed gently. “You’re very sweet, Lorenz…”

“You make it very easy, my dear.” For some reason, Florina’s heart skipped a beat at that. My dear? Why was that making her feel so caught up in her feelings?

“Sh-Shush…”

The rest of the date consisted of witty back and forth between the two of them, and as Florina was about to suggest they pay, Lorenz got out his phone.

“Wha–?”

“Hold on one moment,” he said smoothly, as his fingers glided across the screen. He tapped it again a few times, slid his fingers across it, and then put it back in his pocket. “I’ve paid.”

“Wait… Lorenz! Surely we should split the bill?” Florina’s hand, which was still in his, squeezed his. “That’s fair, right?”

“I don’t mind, especially if you’d be happy to go on a second date with me.” Lorenz smiled at her, and she felt warmth bubble up inside her.

“A second… date?” Lorenz nodded, and she felt a grin cross her face. “Yes! I’d love to!”

“Excellent. Shall I message you to sort it out?”

“Please do!” Florina squeezed his hand again, her heart beating far too fast, and Lorenz chuckled. “Thank you Lorenz.”

“That’s alright, dear Florina.” He took her hand, and kissed it. It sent shivers up Florina’s spine, and she smiled at him wistfully as he let go. “Do you want me to walk you home?”

“It’s alright! Fio– my sister would have questions anyway, so I’ll go myself.” She grinned as she got up, legs a bit shaky, and Lorenz calmly got up next to her. “But thank you.”

“It’s entirely my pleasure. Be safe, and have a lovely day.” He took her other hand, and kissed it as well, making her head spin.

“Y-you too!” She giggled, and as she walked off, she felt her heart start to speed up again. She did it! She went on a date! He liked her! She liked him! Things were great! They were going to go on a second date! He was so sophisticated, but so kind! He called her ‘my dear’ and she loved it! Her walk home was a joyful one, and if Fiora noticed when she got through the door, she didn’t say anything. Florina immediately went into her room, and, burying her face in a pillow, squeed until it was time for her afternoon classes. She went on a date! And it was great!

Lorenz felt incredibly guilty when his second-ever Tinder match popped up at the end of his date with Florina, but he was intrigued by the prospect. Claude _had_ said it was okay to go on different dates with different people, so long as once you made things official you broke things off with all the others, but the idea of playing the field made him feel vaguely unscrupulous. That being said, if he was going to find the best girlfriend for himself, he would have to play the field. A ‘necessary evil,’ as his father would put it.

No matter. That afternoon, he was going to meet his second match, and it seemed promising. Palla seemed a bit older, a bit more mature, and a bit more confident, and that kind of variety was good. He _was_ playing the field, after all…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoy the story thus far, please leave kudos! If you have someone you want Lorenz to go out with, please tell me! Currently I'm picking people who I think he'd have an interesting time with, and it's okay if they're in 3H! Palla's going to go on a date with him next chapter, in case you're wondering what's next :)


	3. Lorenz and Palla, Sitting In A Rose Garden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lorenz and Palla go on their first date, as Palla tries to get over her best friend moving out of town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I'm liking this AU, and I'm going to try and get a chapter out every day! I say this, but here's hoping I can commit :)
> 
> Anyway, Palla time!

Palla had gone on Tinder at the behest of her best friend Abel, after she’d had a long-winded vent over Whatsapp at him about how lonely it was in Askr now that he’d finished his degree.

“You should get out there, lol” he texted to her, at some ungodly hour of the morning. “I know we always hung out, but maybe now that you’re postgrad you should try finding another guy?”

“yeah” she replied rather noncommittally, “wild that I’m going on Tinder of all things, though!”

“it works… like est said she met a nice guy over tinder, so maybe you will? don’t sweat it tho”

She sighed as she looked at her bright phone screen. He was right, Est found a really sweet guy named Ashe over Tinder, and surely she’d find someone… She went onto the App Store, downloaded Tinder, and waited for it to install.

“like, guys like you, they just find you kind of scary bc you’re tall lol” Thanks Abel, she thought to herself. Just because she was six foot didn’t mean that she was automatically terrifying, but most guys panicked because she wasn’t a small waif. 

“wow thanks abel :P” she responded, opening the app quickly after. She linked her phone to the account, and started selecting photos. What would make people like her? She should be upfront about her height, she decided, and picked some photos of herself where you could see just how tall she was. One with her sisters, not one with Abel because that would be _weird!_ and a few of her out and about around Askr.

“nw palla lol” Sigh. Abel did get on her nerves with all of the ‘lol’ comments, but he was her best friend. They’d met at the start of their biology degree, and they’d become fast friends as their degrees went on. Soon, they were inseparable, and once Palla heard Abel was going off to do research in Muspell, well… It hurt. She decided to go back for an honours year, but she felt bad about doing so. However, once her degree was over, maybe she could head down to Muspell too!

She finished up her profile, with a bio mentioning her height, major, and favourite flavour of ice cream, and then felt her eyelids drooping.

“sorry, about to fall asleep, ttyl?”

“sure! sleep well, palla :)”

“you too!” She put her phone to sleep, and resolved to swipe the following morning before classes started. It felt exciting, and terrifying, knowing that she’d be trying to find a guy, but it didn’t bother her too much. Here’s hoping she would find someone kind, and sweet, and understanding… Ah…

* * *

She’d scheduled the date right after one of her classes, and as such she was hoping that Lorenz wouldn’t mind that she looked like a typical, exhausted university student. Catria had noticed her excitement throughout the day at home, and kept shooting her looks as they were in the lounge together before their lectures.

“You okay?” She asked dryly, when Palla had redone her mascara for the fifth time in the reflection of her phone. “You know, literally nobody cares about your makeup.”

“I do!” She frowned at the screen as she tried to get her lashes just right. “I’m meeting someone after class, and I want to look cute.”

“Oh, where.” Catria phrased it less like a question, and more like she was trying to interrogate her.

“The Botanical Gardens?” She sighed as she saw half her lashes looked clumpy.

“Sounds like a date.”

“It is!” Palla smiled, and Catria frowned.

“What, is Abel in town?” She twirled her pen around in her hand, and Palla turned to her crossly.

“For the last time, Abel is just my friend!” She turned back to the mirror, a makeup wipe in hand. “It’s a guy named Lorenz.”

“Did you meet on Tinder?” Catria asked coolly, her eyebrows raising.

“Yeah! Wait— how did you–?”

“Saw him on there too.” She huffed, and rolled her eyes. “No offense, but like, he looks like a snob.”

“He told me I looked like an emerald goddess, so… he’s just kind of poetic, I guess?” Palla blushed, remembering his compliments, as Catria groaned.

“Hope you like being on top, I guess.” Catria turned back to her maths assignment, and Palla gave her a grumpy look.

“Not on the first date!”

Catria merely shrugged, and Palla turned back to the mirror. Little sisters… annoying in the best of times. Once she had her mascara done to her satisfaction, she grabbed her tote bag from beside the couch, and went over to the door. Keys? Check! Notes? Check! Phone? Check!

“Use protection,” Catria said as Palla walked out, eliciting a loud ‘ugh!’ from Palla.

“Of course I will! Not that I intend to!”

Catria smirked as Palla left the house. Botanical gardens? Interesting choice, Lorenz… She pulled out her phone, and texted her friend Minerva.

“palla’s going on a date this afternoon lol”

“WHAT??? palla? the same girl who hasn’t dated anyone bc abel’s her best best friend in the whole world???”

“YEAH haha maybe him being away made her lonely”

“awww, she’s growing up! :D”

“she’s 23 lol” Catria smirked to herself, and added, “anyway. want to go to the botanical gardens and make sure she doesn’t get murdered”

“she’ll be fine cat! unless the guy gives you a bad gut feeling, just like… idk make her dinner tonight and celebrate that way?”

“ok fine.” Catria eyed the cupboard, thinking about what she could make, but quickly texted back, “i think the guy’s a simp”

“lol she’ll handle him just fine”

“lmao that’s what i’m worried about.” Catria sighed. Hopefully Palla would be okay… Even though she wasn’t super innocent, she was definitely going to get won over by Lorenz, and Catria wasn’t sure how to feel about that. Oh well… Bacon Carbonara for dinner?

* * *

Palla arrived to the date bang on time, and as she entered the greenhouse where they’d agreed to meet, she saw Lorenz standing by some vines. She felt her heart quicken, and quickly walked over to him as he turned to her. Suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of panic, she felt her brain try and work out how to greet him. A handshake? A hug? A hug.

She leaned into him as she came over, and as she embraced Lorenz, he made a surprised ‘oh!’ sound, before hugging her back. She realised he smelled lovely, and immediately blushed. Goodness… he was a proper charmer…

“Palla! Good afternoon, how _are_ you?” They parted, and she noticed a small blush across his cheeks. Whether it was because she’d hugged him (Palla you idiot! she thought to herself), she had no idea, but he smiled warmly at her as he looked directly at her. They were the same height, she realised, and it made her feel a bit more confident.

“Doing excellently, thank you, and how are you?” Her voice was steady, and she felt herself becoming more at ease. In contrast, Lorenz seemed to hold himself stiffly, but charmingly.

“Brilliantly, once I caught sight of you.” He took her hand, and gave her a smile that made her feel as if she was the only person in the world at that moment. “Your visage reminded me so much of a Zinnia, that I immediately wanted to bring you here to the gardens. Do you know if they have Zinnia here?”

“You’re a freshman, right?” Lorenz nodded, and she smiled. “I don’t know… I don’t often frequent the gardens except for exercise, but we can always look!”

“Fantastic.” His fingers slid through hers, and she felt a smile work its way onto her face. “I saw a flower garden on the way in, so shall we go there?”

“Yes, let’s!” She smiled at him, and they walked together out of the greenhouse and to a pavilion surrounded by marble statues. “The gardens are beautiful in the fall, even though most flowers aren’t out.”

“Truly… Being amongst nature is wonderful.” He looked at the statues, and smiled. “The owl motif of the gardens is also lovely too…”

“Technically, the botanical gardens are the Blessed Gardens, but nobody’s ever called them that. They say the owl watches over the gardens and keeps the plants healthy,” Palla said, remembering the university orientation around the town. “When the owls come in winter, it’s really pretty!”

“I am most certain it is.” Lorenz looked over at her, and she looked back into his eyes. “But I’m also certain that the owls are not as pretty as you.”

Palla felt warmth spread across her, as she smiled back. “Hey!”

“I speak only the truth.” He raised her hand, and gently laid a kiss on it. Palla could understand Catria’s perceptions now, but his chivalry was adorable. 

They set out towards a part of the garden with rose trellises around the entrance to it, and as they stepped through, they were greeted to the sight of a small fountain surrounded by chrysanthemums and heather, and a marble bench overlooking the scene.

“Beautiful,” Palla breathed, and Lorenz nodded in agreement. “I didn’t know mums bloomed in fall…”

“It is truly awe-inspiring,” Lorenz responded, his facade dropping for a moment. “The natural world is so wonderful…”

“I agree…” Palla turned to Lorenz, and looked at his contemplative expression. He seemed less stiff, and she felt a smile work its way onto her face as she saw his eyelids lower. “Do you want to sit down and talk for a bit? We can find the Zinnia flowers later…”

“I would love to.” The two of them went down to the bench, and as Lorenz sat down, Palla felt a sense that she should do something. Sitting down next to him, she put her arm around his shoulders, eliciting a surprised noise from Lorenz. He quickly put his arm around hers, and she felt her heart lift as he guided her head towards the crook of his neck. Lying her head there, she felt a warmth travel up her body as she inhaled his scent. It was floral, but musky, she now realised, and it intrigued her.

“What do you study?” She asked him after a moment’s silence, as they admired the scenery and appreciated each other’s touch. He seemed to take a moment to breathe, and then replied, his voice somewhat deeper than it was.

“Classical Studies.” He inhaled, and then continued. “It’s a fascinating subject but… more important, what do you study?”

She smiled at his chivalry as he took another breath in. “Biology, in my honours year.” She laughed, and added, “it’s not Classics though, that’s for sure!”

“What got you interested in it?” Lorenz replied, pulling Palla closer to him. She nestled into his neck, taking another sniff of his fragrance, and he murmured, “if it isn’t too personal, of course…”

“I always loved animals,” Palla began to recount, “and when I was a kid, my family took a trip to a farm with horses. I got really interested in horse breeding, and then when I was in high school I decided to start doing biology as a specialisation.”

Lorenz nodded. “So it’s your passion.”

“Yes!” Palla grinned. “It’s definitely a subject I love, and one that I’ve honed over time. Sequencing genetic code is really interesting to me, and hopefully I can help people understand DNA better.”

Lorenz nodded again, slower. “I cannot say I know much about biology… I dropped my sciences as fast as I could, so I could do ancient languages instead.” He sighed, and Palla squeezed him gently. “Ha… you have a tender touch, Palla.”

“Thank you,” she said softly. Was that why he’d gone all mellow? She squeezed him gently again, and he did the same, a blush starting to colour his cheeks. Her body was admittedly warming at his touch, but he was adorable in his reaction. He is a few years younger than you, Palla thought, so it’s likely he’s very new to all of this. But to be fair, so are you!

They sat in a tender silence for a while, occasionally breaking it with pieces of small-talk, but it became apparent to both Palla and Lorenz that they enjoyed each other’s company. As the air began to chill and the sun started to set, Lorenz turned to her with a smile.

“Thank you _so_ very much for this abso _lute_ ly _love_ ly date,” he said smoothly, with a heavy emphasis, and he took her hand which was holding him with his free hand. “You are an angel brought to this cold earth, I swear.”

“Hehe, you’re much the same Lorenz.” Palla turned her head towards his, and suddenly was overcome with a sudden urge to kiss him. That _is_ what people did on their first dates, was it not?

She slowly leaned in, and her lips met his. The first thing she noticed was that he’d gone stiff again, but as she tilted her head to properly kiss him she could feel the heat coming off his cheeks. He took his free hand and used it to trace her cheek, and she took that as her cue to keep kissing him. Her free hand entangled itself in his long purple hair, and soon they were making out in a rather clumsy way, with their arms still around each other. His lips were rather thin, but Palla didn’t mind. If anything, his heart beating at the speed of light against her chest made her forget about everything but kissing him.

They parted, and immediately Lorenz let go of her to hold her face in his hands. “Goodness, Palla… I fear calling you an angel would be entirely not enough after your kisses.” He started to stroke across her cheekbones, and she wondered if she was being appraised or gazed at. It didn’t matter anyway, as he continued. “Perhaps you are more akin to a god.”

“Lorenz, you don’t have to flatter me…” She blushed, surprised at the intensity of his compliments. “You’re a really good kisser,” Palla said in response, looking into his deep purple eyes, “and I think it was probably both of us kissing well that made it so good.” At least, that’s what Est said about kissing, if she remembered correctly.

“You make it _very_ easy for me.” He smiled at her again, and laughed suddenly, catching Palla off guard.

“What is it?” She gave him a questioning look, and he straightened himself up.

“We never did see the Zinnia flowers, did we?” He frowned, and then appeared to have a lightbulb go off in his head. “However, if you would be open to a second date, I’d be overjoyed to go on a quest to find the Zinnia flowers.”

“I’d love to!” Palla smiled, and put her hands on top of his, which were still on her cheeks. “Same time next week?”

“Absolutely fine by me.” Lorenz looked into her eyes so intently, and she felt worried as his gaze sharpened, but he smiled. “Are you wearing mascara?”

“Yes!” Palla grinned, and then frowned. “What about it?”

“There is not a clump on your lashes…” He gave her a warm smile, and ran his left hand down her face to her jawline. “You are meticulous in appearance, and that is… incredible.”

“Thank you…” Palla looked at him again, and then down at his lips. Surely, surely she could go in for another kiss…

She did, but this time, Lorenz saw it coming and embraced her as their lips touched. A kiss here, a kiss there, and soon they’d forgotten that they were planning to leave at all.

* * *

“Goodness Palla, you’re home at last!” Est was in the kitchen with Catria as Palla returned, hair slightly disheveled, but her face smiling brilliantly. “What happened?”

“My date went on a bit longer than we’d planned,” she said honestly. “But he walked me back home, so that was kind of him!”

“Invite him in,” Catria said matter-of-factly, with a hint of curiosity.

“He’s already gone back to his apartment,” Palla replied somberly. “But it’s alright, we’re meeting next week!”

“Yay!” Est giggled as she ran over to give Palla a hug. “I’m so happy for you!”

“He’s so lovely,” Palla said cheerfully, “if a bit Type-A…”

“That’s good! At least he’s not a neckbeard!” Est was all smiles as she dragged Palla into the kitchen to see the carbonara on the stove. “Look! Catria’s cooking!”

“Thank you Catria!” Palla said with a smile, and Catria shrugged.

“Whatever, he’s still a simp, but whatever.”

“Catria!!!” Est made a grumpy face, and Palla laughed. Things were good right now, and that was what mattered.

* * *

“Claude. Help.” Lorenz got in the door to his apartment, and Claude immediately looked at him curiously from the couch, where he was watching Netflix.

“What happened? Bad date?”

“No, it’s worse.” Lorenz sat down on the couch next to him, and sighed. “I do not know how to kiss.”

Claude eyed his friend curiously, but noticed Lorenz looked incredibly tense. “Did you kiss Palla?”

“Yes, but I did a terrible job at it. I showered her in compliments, but I fear I only turned her off… but it felt so good, but it felt too wet…” 

“If she didn’t complain, or she wanted to leave immediately, that would’ve meant you’re a bad kisser.” Claude sighed. “It’s fine, you’ll get practice.”

“I feel like a charlatan, kissing different girls. I cannot imagine kissing Florina now…”

“Florina will understand. I mean, you’re not official yet, so like, she can’t get too upset! Plus, I bet she’s inexperienced enough that she’d love just about anything.”

“Thanks Claude,” Lorenz said coldly. They sat in silence, until Lorenz broke it a few moments later. “Anyway, you didn’t tell me how good physical contact felt.”

“Oh?” Claude turned to him, and raised an eyebrow. “What were you doing with her?”

“She embraced me at the start of our date, and it felt glorious… We then held each other at the park, and then came the kissing… She’s so beautiful, and she’s definitely girlfriend material.”

Claude sighed. All he’d heard from Lorenz the past few days was, “Florina’s very timid but lovely,” and “she would make an excellent girlfriend,” and “she’s so delicate, like a beautiful flower,” and other typical Lorenz-isms.

“You can’t expect someone to be your perfect girl,” he said with a sigh. “Everyone has flaws, and even the most compatible girl with you will always have some qualities you don’t like. Like, my last girlfriend, she hated cats! How can you hate cats?!”

“I think we all agreed that Monica is a two-faced, cheating, backstabbing villain.” Lorenz sighed, and nodded. “I understand your point though. I’ll try not to judge their flaws, of which I can’t find any for Palla yet.”

“Lord help us,” Claude said to the ceiling vent. “Don’t put her on a pedestal, okay?” He sighed again, and slapped a hand on Lorenz’s back. “You’re an idiot, but you’re a lovable idiot.”

“Noted. I have another date tomorrow that I need to prep for anyway,” Lorenz said off-handedly, and Claude immediately perked up.

“Another match?”

“Yes, and she seems very interesting!” Lorenz immediately puffed out his chest, and grinned. “She seems like an interesting girl, and a bit more refined than Florina and Palla.”

“Come on, what’s her name?” Claude said, intrigued, leaning into Lorenz conspiratorially.

Lorenz relished in Claude’s anticipation, and after a dramatic pause, whispered, “Maribelle.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really excited to get Lorenz to meet Maribelle! Here's hoping it doesn't end in catastrophe...


	4. Maribelle, A Real Lady

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lorenz and Maribelle go on their first date, with sweet results.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! My updates are definitely going to become more sporadic, but rest assured that I will try and write substantial updates where I can! :)

“Aah, Maribelle! You got another match!” Sumia took Maribelle’s phone and squeed. “And he looks RICH!”

“I already am rich, I don’t need a rich boyfriend.” Maribelle looked at her screen. Lorenz. Despite his memeing, she found his profile rather endearing. He seemed to be a man of taste, and that was more than she could say for the other guys on the app. The Geriks and Arthurs of Tinder seemed to want no more than for her to put out, and Lorenz seemed as if he’d rather court her for a long time before he even considered physical matters. And thank goodness for that, as she was not having yet another date with a man who wanted to paw her rather than get to know her.

“Still! He’s typing! Oh my gosh!” Sumia gave her a ‘you-know-what-this-means’ look, and Maribelle sighed.

“At least chivalry is not dead. Good Lord, he’s sent it.”

“Dearest Maribelle, your profile captivated me the minute I saw your radiant visage. Tell me, how are you doing this fine evening?”

“A man of taste!” Maribelle raised her eyebrows at the screen. “I suppose that’s what you get with a man who poses next to first-edition T.S. Elliot novels.”

“Can you see what’s on his bookshelf in that one photo?” Sumia asked, giving Maribelle a look.

“I know it, because I own those too.” She smiled, and started to formulate a reply.

Maribelle was admittedly on Tinder out of necessity rather than want, and a rather embarrassing necessity at that. Her family’s financial state was excellent, but her parents were hoping that she’d settle down with someone as soon as she could. Blame it on her family’s traditions, or a deeply conservative streak that ran through the family tree, but she was presented with an ultimatum. Come to Thanksgiving dinner with a significant other, preferably male, or lose her family’s financial support.

Sumia, her friend most versed in love, was very understanding. Her mother wanted her to find a man before the second semester, and so she took it upon herself to make Maribelle and herself Tinder and Bumble accounts. Together, the two girls tried to find guys who wouldn’t cause them too much embarrassment, while trying to fend off the dudebros who seemed to foam at the bit whenever one of them matched with them.

“My evening was rather dull until you messaged me, truth be told, and I’m impressed by your eloquence. What are you studying?” Send. Sumia looked at the message and laughed.

“A man after your own heart! Goodness, I hope things work out, because you two are so similar it’s not even funny!” Sumia laughed, and Maribelle rolled her eyes.

“There are so many idiots on campus,” she said coolly, “that I’m shocked a man as refined as Lorenz is even attending Askr.”

“You know Virion!” Sumia struggled to contain her giggles as Maribelle tried to fight a wave of nausea at the thought.

“Yes, Virion, the upperclassman who heard we were from Ylisse and tried to mansplain our own hometown to us. Yes, Virion, who lived in Ylisse for two whole years, and acts as if he knows it better than us, when he never even went north of Regna Ferox. Yes, Virion.” Maribelle scoffed, and Sumia burst into another fit of laughter.

“He’s kind of refined, you have to admit!”

“He’s an ape with manners, Sumia. Oh, he’s responding,” Maribelle said, watching her phone screen intently. “Any matches on your phone?”

“Just two more today! This guy called Sain, who seems like a slut, and another guy named Sylvain, who seems like an even bigger slut.” Sumia snorted. “Sain’s typing though, so he might prove me wrong.”

“Don’t hold your breath,” Maribelle said tiredly, as she looked at her phone. He stopped typing, then started again. “I sincerely hope this Lorenz is as elegant in real life as he is on his phone.”

“With hair like his, I’d be shocked if he wasn’t at least a bit eccentric,” Sumia said while typing furiously. 

“True.”

“Classical Studies, a subject of which I am rather fond. What subject are you majoring in?” 

Hmm. Maribelle started writing her reply. “I’m doing a Law and Political Science degree, in the hopes of becoming a senator.” She smiled as she hit send. Of course he was a Classics major. Eccentric, presentable, intelligent…

He started typing back immediately, and Maribelle looked back at Sumia, who was smiling at her phone. “Anything new?”

“Sain seems nice…” She gave Maribelle a grin, and Maribelle sighed.

“Just make sure he’s not another Virion.” She turned back to her phone, and made a happy noise. “Oh!”

“What an impressive goal! I, for one, certainly hope you are able to achieve your goal, and become a senator. That being said, would you like to meet me for dinner at ‘Myrrh’ tomorrow night at six-thirty?”

“He just asked me on a date,” Maribelle said with a smile. 

“Are you accepting?!” Sumia asked excitedly, clutching her phone in her hand.

“Well… I think I shall.” She quickly picked up her phone, and typed a response.

“I would be delighted to. See you tomorrow at six-thirty!” She put down her phone, and a smile worked its way onto her face.

“Oh my gosh!” Sumia grinned, and gave her friend a big hug. “That’s so exciting!”

“I know. Here’s hoping that things go well…” She crossed her arms, and smiled to herself as she mentally made preparations. What to wear? What to order? It was exciting, but she knew she needed to make the best first impression possible. It was her inheritance on the line, after all…

* * *

Maribelle certainly hadn’t expected Lorenz to be so… eccentric, but as they met outside the restaurant and went in, he’d pulled out all the stops. He chivalrously held open the door for her, pulled out her chair for her, and ordered them both a white wine from Magvel.

“You certainly know how to treat a lady,” she’d said after they’d ordered, and he laughed, before responding.

“Well, a lady as elegant as you should not have to worry about a thing,” he replied, his tongue as silver as the cutlery in front of them. Myrrh was one of the more fancy restaurants in town, and Maribelle was impressed by his taste. “Now, I’m intrigued by your degree… What led you to want to become a senator?”

“My father is a governor in Ylisse, my grandfather a representative in the House, and my great-grandfather an advisor. I was always interested in governmental policy, and from a young age I wanted to make decisions for the betterment of my country.” She smiled, a well practiced smile, and Lorenz nodded, understanding.

“That’s truly admirable to want to follow the path of your elders,” Lorenz said warmly, and Maribelle found herself impressed that he didn’t ask for names. Either he knew, or he didn’t mind, and both were refreshing. “Do you do much outside of your study?”

“I do a bit of gardening when I’m able to, and I play polo when I’m able to travel to my club.”

“Gardening, truly one of the delights of living in a suburb. Alas, my apartment is too small for a garden, so my windowsill aloe is rather lonely.”

“Aloe?” Maribelle smiled, impressed again. Most rich boys opted for succulents, or something low maintenance. “What would you plant if you had a whole garden?”

“It would need to be a big one. Herb-wise, my favourites that I’d want include chamomile, basil, parsley, sage, and fennel, but I’d also want dill, thyme, lavender, and chives if I could fit them in. At home, my parents had a large rose garden with various hybrids, but they were annoyed by my herbs, so I had a small section which they water while I’m studying. I had French Tarragon, Cilantro, Rosemary, and Mint in that garden.” He rambled on with the various plants he’d plant, and Maribelle gazed at him while he spoke. The first thing she eyed was his lopsided haircut, and how cutting-edge it looked even now as they spoke. He was dressed impeccably, perfectly toeing the line between eccentric and acceptable to wear outdoors, and he had a red rose in the lapel of his blazer. The blazer itself was a lovely pink colour, and it complimented her clothing perfectly. It couldn’t have been an accident either, as he soon mentioned his purple Hyacinths he had growing at home in his favourite colour.

“That’s fascinating,” Maribelle said at the end of his speech, and Lorenz smiled, clearly flattered at the fact she hadn’t gotten up and left.

“I am _so_ glad you think so! My roommate Claude tells me I sound like an old man when I talk about my garden.” Lorenz sighed, and Maribelle chuckled to herself. He was adorable, even when he did sound like an old man. “Oh, and that’s our food!”

He’d ordered himself crab-stuffed lobster tails, and Maribelle had ordered gnocchi with a gourmet balsamic dressing. Over the food, they chatted about their hobbies, interests, and favourite things. With each factoid, Maribelle found herself more smitten with Lorenz, until they’d finished their meals and glasses of wine.

“I’d suggest we head out, but there really aren’t a wealth of places where we can sit and talk,” Lorenz said with a sigh.

“That’s alright,” Maribelle said, calling over a waiter. “Would you want a dessert?”

“Oh, I must decline,” he said politely, but Maribelle sensed a certain stiffness in his voice.

“I insist,” she said warmly, handing her card surreptitiously to the waiter as she ordered. “May I please have a three layer caramel slice?”

The waiter nodded, and Lorenz smiled. “A lady after my own heart.”

“Well, that was the intention of this date.” The wheels turned in her brain, and she mentally smiled as she sighed, making Lorenz frown.

“What is it that troubles you, my dear?” He looked genuinely concerned, and Maribelle noted it as she replied.

“I wish I could sit beside you to enjoy this meal, but alas, I’m worried I’ll get in the way of the other patrons.”

“Oh!” Lorenz immediately stood up and moved his chair next to hers with a smile. “Would this make you feel better?”

Maribelle smiled, genuinely this time. “Yes.” She placed her hands in his, and she saw a little blush creep across his cheeks. “You’re adorable, Lorenz.”

“Ah, I must insist– you’re adorable.” A playful smile appeared across his face, and she leaned in a bit closer to him.

“Yes, but what if you’re more adorable?”

“Impossible, as nobody is as adorable as you.” She looked up at him as she moved closer, and she sensed a panic inside him, quickly quelled as she held the side of his face and leaned in to kiss him.

Well, she had to find out somehow if they had chemistry.

His hands found their way into her hair, and she felt her heart beat harder as he kissed her back, slowly at first, but then as deeply as it would be publicly acceptable to do. His lips tasted of the seafood he’d just been eating, but she made a concerted effort not to add her tongue to the mix. Leave him wanting, and all that.

“Ahem.”

The two turned around to find the waiter, holding their caramel slice. “Thank you!” Maribelle said, thinking on her feet, and after the waiter had left them the plate and walked off, she turned to Lorenz and laughed.

“I, for one, cannot wait to eat this with you.”

“Same here.” She took his hand again, and he smiled.

“Tell me my dear, would you want to go on another date with me soon?”

Maribelle took a forkful of caramel slice, ate it, and then turned to him with a smile of her face. “Yes, I would be delighted to.”

“Excellent!” He pecked her cheek, and she blushed as he parted. He was spontaneous as well as meticulous… fascinating.

The dessert was soon finished, and soon Maribelle was on the bus back to her flat. Pulling out her phone, she texted Sumia that she was on her way home soon, and she ruminated on the date. Lorenz was so well put together that it was extremely attractive, but weren’t kisses supposed to be a bit more… exciting?

“Sumia, help me out here,” she texted, “how does kissing feel with a guy you like a lot?”

Sumia replied lightning fast. “like you’re going to burn up and die!”

Wonderful. Maribelle frowned as she replied, “can kisses get like that over time?”

“if the guy’s like, nervous the first time, yeah! lol was he a bad kisser”

Maribelle felt something gnawing at her, but she ignored it as she replied, “just fine, that’s the problem. see you soon!”

“okkkk byeeee”

Maribelle put her phone away, and sighed. Everyone had flaws, but his was minute enough that it should be fine. Right?

* * *

Lorenz got home, stomach full, filled with worry. How was Claude going to react when…

“I’ve made the creme brulee!” Lorenz sighed, and went into the kitchen, only to find himself shocked into silence as he came face to face with Claude, clad in a pair of shorts and an apron.

“What are you wearing?” Lorenz said in shock, eyes roaming across his broad shoulders and strong chest.

“An apron?” Claude turned around so fast that Lorenz nearly missed his smile, but Lorenz went up to him.

“Claude, you could burn yourself.” He patted his shoulder for effect, and Claude sighed.

“Do you want this creme brulee or not?”

“My apologies.” Lorenz hung his blazer on the apron hook (he’d iron it later, he thought) and turned to Claude. “Maribelle insisted I eat a caramel slice with her.”

Claude’s face fell, but he handed Lorenz a plate with a small portion on it anyway. “Just as a treat.”

“Just as a treat,” Lorenz echoed. He looked up at his roommate, and even though he knew that his roommate was kind at times, this felt… excessive. “I’m suspicious of why you’re feeding me baked goods, Claude.”

“Listen…” Claude leaned onto the bench, and smiled at him. “I just want to let you know that I’m proud of you for getting out there!” Lorenz gave him a cold stare, but Claude turned back to his creme brulee. “Tell me if it tastes good, I haven’t had any yet.”

Lorenz left the kitchen, and it wasn’t until he’d shut himself inside his room that he tried the creme brulee, ruminating all the while. What was Claude trying to do? He always had a long-term plan in mind, and he wouldn’t just bake for the fun of it…

Nevertheless, the creme brulee was good, even though he felt stuffed with dessert.


	5. Florina on Ice!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Florina and Lorenz go for ice skating and ice cream!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Here's Lorenz and Florina's second date, and I hope you all think it's cool! (hehe pun fully intended)

Florina was ecstatic for her second date, and as she prepared at Lyn’s house, she could feel her heart quicken with every passing second.

“Should I wear the purple dress? What about the blue one?”

“You’ll look great,” Lyn said comfortingly, leaning against the doorframe to her room. Florina was inside with a selection of dresses, and Lyn found her bumbling positively adorable.

“That’s not an answer!” Florina gave Lyn a cross look, and Lyn snorted. “I don’t know what colour looks best…”

“You look very cute in both,” Lyn reassured her. “But the blue one isn’t as same-y as your hair, I guess?”

Florina pulled a white dress off the bed, and sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. “This could look nice?”

“The wrong kind of guy will take that… interestingly.” Lyn frowned, and Florina flopped onto Lyn’s bed, groaning.

“This is so hard! Why did I agree to go on a second date?”

“I don’t know…” Lyn paused, and raised her eyebrow at Florina when she lifted her head from the bed. “Maybe it’s because your heart got so fluttery when you got back to your flat that you decided you wanted to be with him forever?”

“Lyn!” Florina buried her head back in Lyn’s bed. “Noo! He’s just nice, and talks enough that I don’t have to say much!”

Lyn raised her other eyebrow at Florina, sighing. “I know guys scare you, but they won’t bite if you try and talk to them.”

“They might though! Hector has… teeth…”

Lyn laughed, thinking of their friend Hector. “Yeah, but Hector’s never going to talk over you. Never ever ever.”

“Mmmm, I know,” Florina said, resurfacing from Lyn’s duvet. “Blue?”

“Blue.”

Lyn had offered to walk Florina to the ice skating rink, as she’d had a summer job there the previous year, and Florina was thankful for the company. The dogs, Archer and Bow-Bow, were coming along, and Florina made sure to give them plenty of cuddles along the way. Soon, she caught sight of Lorenz outside the ice rink, and clutched Lyn’s hand excitedly.

“It’s him!” She didn’t point, but Lyn saw him immediately.

“He’s standing up so straight,” Lyn noticed, and Florina realised his posture was impeccable even when she wasn’t there. Was he always that… perfect? Her nerves fluttered back, but she steeled herself. This wasn’t like primary school.

“Lorenz!” She called out when she got closer, and Lorenz jumped, before turning to her. His eyebrows raised at the sight of Lyn, and Florina blushed as she realised how Lyn must look to him.

While she had more of a feminine bent, Lyn definitely dressed a lot more tough. When Florina bought lace stockings, Lyn was finding another pair of secondhand Docs, and while she’d spend time doing her hair up in fun ways, Lyn was never seen without her signature ponytail.

“Florina, it’s a pleasure to see you again.” He took her hand as she approached him, kissed it, and gave Lyn a polite look, extending his hand. “Are you… Lyndis?”

“You can call me Lyn, the only person who calls me Lyndis is my grandfather, and my friend Sain.” Lyn grinned as she shook his hand, and Florina giggled. Somehow, Lorenz made her full name sound lovely…

“Ah yes, I shall do so Lyn.” He looked down at the dogs, slightly terrified, but the dogs were too excited to focus on him as they tried to pull Lyn off to the side. Lyn stood strong, and Florina felt herself smiling as she saw Lyn’s biceps flex. Nobody bossed her around!

“I think the dogs smell something, so I’ll leave you both to it.” She gave Florina a surreptitious ‘call me’ look, and soon she was off, leading her dogs towards the smell. Florina gave Lorenz a smile, but he took her hand before she could speak.

“You look beautiful,” Lorenz said warmly, his other hand gently fingering the lace embroidery on her sleeve. “Where did you find this dress?”

“I found it while looking through a thrift store,” Florina said with a smile. “I like it a lot!”

“It looks spectacular on you.” Lorenz opened the door to the rink for Florina, and she went in shyly as Lorenz put his arm around her. “Have you ever skated before?”

“Once, as a kid, so you might have to make sure I don’t fall!” She gave Lorenz a giddy grin, and Lorenz squeezed her gently.

“Of course, my dear.” He laid a kiss on Florina’s forehead, and she felt her heart feel as if it was about to explode. He kissed her!!!

They got their skates on, and soon they were on the ice. Florina could barely contain her excitement as Lorenz took her hand, and they skated in circles as Lorenz talked about various things. Florina enjoyed tuning out and enjoying the feeling of his hand in hers, but she couldn’t help but remember what Lyn said. Would he listen?

“And that’s how my pet gerbil was eventually found, up a seventy-foot pine tree and very content with his stalk of celery!”

“I had a pet hamster as a kid with my sisters,” Florina said, and Lorenz smiled.

“How adorable! What was the hamster’s name?”

“Percival!” Lorenz gave her a warm smile, and she felt her heart soar. He could listen if she wanted to talk!

“That’s such a lovely name,” Lorenz said, taking her other hand as he skated backwards. Florina tried and felt her balance slip, but before she could slip onto the ice, two warm arms picked her back up and helped her skate backwards.

“Th-Thank you Lorenz!” Florina said, surprised, and Lorenz chuckled behind her.

“I couldn’t let a lady as lovely as you fall onto the ice.” He held her closer to him, and Florina let him guide the two of them around in circles as he began to talk again. Soon, Lorenz took Florina’s hands, and spinned her around. Florina yelped, and Lorenz quickly took her into his arms once she’d spun around. “My apologies, I should’ve warned you… I wanted to see your face again.”

“It’s alright,” Florina said, happy he knew how to skate her along. “I like seeing your face too!”

Lorenz smiled, genuine and heartfelt. “You have no idea how elated I feel to hear that.”

They skated, but soon Lorenz’s hands made their way up her arms to cup her face. Florina blushed against his hands, and he gave her a gentle look as he looked into her eyes. Florina had no idea how they were skating, but that was the last thing on her mind when his lips met hers in a tender kiss.

His lips were soft, was the first thing Florina thought, and his lips smelled like Lyn’s strawberry Burt’s Bees lip balm was the second. Soon, she was aware of how wet their kiss was, and how good it felt to kiss him. They stopped skating, leaning against the clear perspex on the side of the rink, and Lorenz kissed her deeply. Her head was flying into the sky, and when they parted, she clutched at her heart, wondering how to feel. Her head… her heart…

“I’ve never been kissed before,” was all that came out. Lorenz looked surprised, but gently kissed her forehead before she continued. “That was… incredible.”

“I must say, my dear Florina, you are so delicate in all that you do, and kissing you is truly a wonderful experience.” His hands traced her cheekbones, and she blushed, her face pink as he continued. “You send waves throughout my body when we kiss, and your soft breaths feel like fresh air to my lungs…”

Florina giggled, and pulled herself closer to him, embracing him. “You’re so kind, Lorenz…”

“And you, my dear, are an angel incarnate upon this earth.” Lorenz pulled her back onto the ice with him, and the two of them skated around the rink, smiles on both of their faces.

Soon, they were off the ice, and Florina checked her phone as she slipped her boots off. “Ahh!”

“What’s wrong, my dear?” Lorenz was by her in an instant, his boots back on.

“I told Farina I’d be home by 6 for dinner, and it’s 6:30!” Florina cringed, and Lorenz squeezed her hand.

“If you wish, I could talk to her and tell her that we lost track of time?” Florina shook her head, and quickly dialed her sister’s number.

“Farina?” She said nervously as her sister picked up the phone.

“Hey there Flo!” Farina said cheerfully, a pan sizzling in the background.

“I’m so sorry I’m late! I lost track of the time, and it’s late, and–”

“Don’t panic, Flo!” She laughed, and added, “Fio and I know you’re still on your date. Don’t worry about getting home fast!”

“Thanks Farina… I’ll get home as soon as I can though.”

“Aww, if you want to!” Farina laughed, and added, “Bye!”

“Bye!” Florina hung up the phone, and she leaned on Lorenz’s shoulder. “She said I could take my time, so is there anything more you would want to do?”

Lorenz gently threaded a finger through her curls, and sighed. “I would love nothing more than to treat you to ice cream, if you would so wish to.”

“Do you like ice cream?” Florina asked, giving him a confused look.

“Yes.” Lorenz gave her a soft smile, and continued. “I’m not as snobby as I might look, and I do have rather… base pleasures.” Florina blushed, wondering if he meant something else by that, and Lorenz immediately looked embarrassed. “Ah… to that, I mean I enjoy ice cream and true crime documentaries.”

“Oh.” Florina felt something unfamiliar inside herself, but cast it aside as she gave Lorenz a warm look and took her blades off. “Where would you want to get it?”

“Sorbetland,” Lorenz suggested, “as they have the best berry sorbets. They also do gelato.”

“Mmm!” Florina grinned, and Lorenz gave her another forehead kiss. “I love cookies and creme gelato…”

“Should we go then?” Lorenz took her hands in his, and Florina laughed as she wiggled her toes in her pink lace socks. Lorenz looked down and smiled, saying, “Your tastes in socks is wonderful.”

“Thank you! And uh… don’t we have to pay?” Florina frowned, and Lorenz laughed.

“I paid in advance online.” Florina’s eyebrows raised, and Lorenz smiled. “Please do not worry about paying me back.”

“Lorenz!” Florina tried to look at him sternly, but she struggled to keep herself from smiling. “Hehe…”

“Whenever you’re ready.”

Florina pulled her Mary Janes onto her feet, and smiled as she turned to Lorenz. “I’m ready!”

“Excellent.” He leaned in to kiss her, and she kissed him back, her heart fluttering all the while as she put her hands on his jawline. When they pulled away, Florina swore her heart was about to burst out of her chest, and as Lorenz took her hands and pulled her up to him, the feeling of excitement in her body threatened to make her explode. Lorenz! He was so smooth and warm, and as his hands fingered the lace on her sleeve, she felt excitement run up her body. Why was he so good at this?!

They pulled away, and he gave her a gentle look as she stood up, slightly unsteady on her feet. “Ice- Ice cream?”

“Yes, ice cream.” Hand in hers, they both left the ice rink and headed to Sorbetland. Inside, it was packed with people, and Florina felt herself grin as she saw Lyn inside with Eliwood and Hector. Eliwood and Hector were a ‘thing but not a thing’ as Lyn put it, spending more time with each other than anyone else, and even though Lyn suspected they wanted to ask each other out, she knew they were watching and waiting. It was quite cute, Florina thought with a smile.

“Florina?” Hector called out as he saw her line up, Lorenz’s hand still in hers.

“Hi Hector!” Florina said with a grin, and Eliwood gave the couple a kind look.

“Lyn didn’t tell us you were coming here,” he said, raising an eyebrow at Lyn.

Lyn gave him a playful look back, and said, “If I’d known, I would’ve brought Kent and Sain along too.”

“Hello there,” Lorenz said calmly, given that three of her friends had just happened to be at the same place as them. “My name is Lorenz Hellman Gloucester, and you are…?”

“Hector, architecture major.” Hector stood up, accidentally shifting the table off to the side with his thighs, and walked over, holding out his hand for Lorenz to shake. He shook it, and gave Hector a once over.

“Do you play hockey, by any chance?” Lorenz asked, brow furrowed in concentration.

“That’d be my older brother, Uther. I play rugby myself.” Lyn laughed, and Hector frowned. “Oh yeah, you call that football in Askr.”

“It’s fine, I understand what you mean.” Lorenz smiled, curious. “And who are you?” he asked Eliwood.

“Eliwood, and it’s nice to meet you.” He got up as well, and smiled at Lorenz as they shook hands. “I swear I saw you at the Film Society meeting…”

“That would be me, going along with my idiot of a roommate Claude.” Lorenz laughed, and Florina squeezed his arm supportively. “Claude hadn’t seen Amelie, and I needed to rectify that.”

“You have good taste!” Eliwood grinned, and looked down at Florina. “I’ve made Florina sit through many a movie night with me, and she’s, for the most part, not bullied me too much about my art films!”

“Your films aren’t that bad,” Florina said with a small smile. “If anything, they’re kind of a bit better than most normal films!”

“I wouldn’t doubt that for a second,” Lorenz agreed. The line moved on, and Lorenz and Florina realised they were at the counter. “Excuse us for a second.”

“Of course!” Eliwood and Hector returned to their seats, and Lorenz looked up at the menu.

“May I please have two scoops of the Mixed Berry Sorbet?” Lorenz asked, and the redhead at the counter nodded. Florina squinted, looking at her, and realising she looked very similar to the waitress at the cafe. Huh…

“And what would you like, Miss?”

“Ah! Um…” Florina quickly tried to skim over the flavours, but found herself unable to focus. “Cookies and cream, one scoop, and fudge, one scoop?”

“Is that fudge sorbet or gelato?” The cashier asked, and Florina frowned as the words swam before her.

“Gelato?”

“Sure thing!” Lorenz paid quickly, and Florina tried to grab his card off him before he could swipe his card over the receiver, but failed.

“Looorenz! Let me pay at some point!”

He gave her a warm smile, and stroked her hair as he said, “Let me. It’s the gentleman’s way, of course.”

They got their ice creams, but before Florina could go to sit next to Lyn with Lorenz, she saw the Elibe trio getting up.

“Lyn?” She asked, and Lyn gave her a small smile.

“We don’t want to intrude on your date, Flori.” She looked at her ice cream, and chuckled. “Looks chocolate-y.”

“Do you want some?” Florina asked, and Lyn brightened up even as Eliwood tried to drag her away.

“You know fudge is my favourite flavour!” Hector took one of Lyn’s arms as Eliwood took the other, and Florina giggled.

“We’ll give you some real fudge at our apartment!” Hector boomed, and Lyn brightened up.

“Lead the way!” Soon the trio were out, and Florina and Lorenz sat next to each other in a small booth. They ate together, giving each other long looks, and Florina eyed his ice cream. It looked soft as he ate it, almost sucking it from the ice cream, and he looked at her as she marvelled at the fruit pieces.

“Want some?” He asked, and she nodded eagerly. It looked good! He gently lowered the ice cream to her level, and she took a little mouthful on the edge of the top scoop, moaning as she tasted it.

“Mmmm! Nommy…” She gave Lorenz a smile, and his cheeks reddened as she raised her gelato to him. “Do you want some?”

“It would be improper for me to rid you of your ice cream…” She gave him a pout-y look, and he smiled. “Alright…” He took a small mouthful, and got a little bit of chocolate on his lip as he pulled away, a smile on his face. “Sweet, rich, wonderful… It reminds me of how it feels to kiss you.”

Florina blushed, and took a mouthful of her ice cream to try and cool herself down. “You’re so sweet… and rich… and wonderful…”

Lorenz kissed her forehead, sticky and sweet, and she giggled. “I cannot think of one as wonderful as you.”

“Ssh!” She giggled, and Lorenz took the chance to eat some more of his ice cream. “You’re eating yours so fast…”

It was true. Lorenz had finished his first scoop, and was halfway through his second. “There’s still the cone.”

“Still!” Florina giggled, and ate some more of hers. “This is so yummy…”

“Ha ha ha!” Lorenz replied, chuckling as he watched Florina eat. “You remind me of a sparrow, pecking at your ice cream so delicately.”

“Oh?” Florina felt a bit embarrassed, until Lorenz puffed out his chest. Ah, a piece of trivia.

“There is an ancient poem about a sparrow that I’d love to tell you, if you wish to listen,” Lorenz offered with a smile, raising his hand to his heart as his back arched.

“I’d love to hear!” She giggled as he began, giving her a gentle yet intense look.

“Passer, deliciae meae puellae, quicum ludere, quem in sinu tenere, cui primum digitum dare appententi et acris solet incitare morsus,” he began, and Florina quickly got lost in the Latin as he continued, his tone light and exaggerating all the right consonants. Once he’d finished, Florina clapped gently against her cone, and Lorenz smiled warmly.

“That’s about a sparrow?”

“A sparrow sitting upon the finger of Catullus’s lover, Lesbia.”

Florina frowned. “Lesbia… as in lesbian?”

“Lesbia, in the style of Sappho, who hailed from the island of Lesbos. Lesbia would mean a person of Lesbos, and so it’s poetic, as Lesbia is Catullus’s anonymous muse.” Lorenz took another bite as Florina smiled.

“I bet Lyn would love that poem… she feeds some sparrows on her porch each morning!” Florina smiled, and Lorenz gave her a tender look.

“Lyn seems like one with nature,” he noted. Florina nodded, and he smiled. “If she’s like the trees in a forest, you’re the clouds in the sky.”

“Hehe!” Florina giggled, and Lorenz wrapped his arm around her as she finished her ice cream and he began to eat his cone. They sat like that, in comfortable silence, until Florina had finished the last of her cone. Lorenz took the side of her face with his hand, and leaned in to kiss her as she nuzzled into him. Their kiss was sweet, tasting of berries and chocolate, and it wasn’t until Florina felt Lorenz’s phone buzz that she pulled away.

“Ah… sorry, I’ll get that.” Lorenz stood up, answered the phone, and before the person on the other end could reply, he said, “Claude, I’m walking Florina home, I’ll be back in time for The Bachelorette.” He hung up, and gave her an apologetic look. “Apologies. Claude wanted me to be back by seven-thirty, so I might walk you home and dash, if that’s alright.”

“Don’t worry! What time is it now?” Florina asked, looking at Lorenz curiously.

“Seven-twenty-one.”

She flinched. “Aaaah!”

Lorenz walked Florina home quickly, as with a peck goodbye that sent warmth flooding through her fingers, she dashed into the kitchen to see a plate wrapped in clingfilm with a note on it.

“Dear Flo, Fio and I are out grocery shopping, but Magvel’s Got Talent is on tonight if you want to watch! xoxo Farina”

Florina sighed, cringing at Farina’s choice of TV. She’d probably go back to her room and do her assignments, but still… she’d rather do anything but watch the arrogant green-haired girl that Lyn loved sing another love song. Sigh… She went into the lounge and picked up the TV remote, flicking to the channel. At least she could bond over how cute Myrrh’s magic act was with her.

* * *

Lorenz burst through the door of his apartment, and, rather annoyedly, shouted, “Claaaaaude!”

“Lorenz, you made it! Elincia’s about to pick who she wants to go on the group date!” Claude turned around on the couch to see Lorenz, red in the face and sweating, his lips pink with berry ice cream. “They’re going to go to an amusement park!”

“I was trying to have a moment with Florina, and you ruined it. Didn’t I tell you only to call me in an emergency while I’m on a date?”

“Sorry…” Claude frowned. “To be fair, you said the date was ending around 6:30.”

“And then Florina and I got ice cream, met some of her friends, and had a heart to heart in a booth at Sorbetland be _fore_ you decided to call me, ruining our conversation.” Lorenz crossed his arm, and sat next to Claude on the couch in a huff. Claude looked oddly hurt, and Lorenz gave him a curious look. “Sorry for blowing up, but I don’t understand why you called.”

“It’s nothing.” Claude turned back to the TV, and Lorenz frowned, watching it half-heartedly with him as Elincia picked the guys to go on her date with her. Claude made a few joking remarks here and there, like, “I can’t believe she invited Silas on the Ferris Wheel,” or, “Lex needs to stay in his lane,” and other banal comments.

By the ad break, Lorenz turned to Claude and made a serious face. “Please tell me what’s going on.”

“I missed you, that’s all.”

“That’s all?” Lorenz felt anger spike up inside him, and he sighed. “Claude, I live with you.”

“I’m…” He looked vulnerable, and Lorenz felt something well up inside him. What was going on? “I’m almost jealous that you’re setting aside time to do things with these girls. I know I got you onto Tinder, but I guess I wasn’t expecting you to be so popular.”

“I haven’t wanted to go on dates with a lot of my matches after meeting Florina, Palla, and Maribelle,” Lorenz said, noticing Claude’s openness. “Would you rather I… toned down the amount of time I spent on dates?”

“Maybe…” Claude met Lorenz’s eyes, and Lorenz felt something jump inside him. “But I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m feeling.”

“I’ll set time limits on my dates.” Lorenz put his hand on Claude’s shoulder as a friendly comforting gesture, but it felt more tense this time, almost as if he was promising something he couldn’t give.

“Thanks.” Claude could feel it too. Neither wanted to look away from the other’s eyes, and Lorenz felt something knot up inside him. He shouldn’t be doing this was his first thought, but his second thought was that this was his best friend Claude. Claude, who’d stuck up for him in elementary school, Claude, who’d watched bad anime with him on the weekends in middle school, Claude, who always had his back in high school… Claude.

He remembered Monica, Claude’s one and only relationship. It was more out of convenience, Lorenz remembered, but he did remember how it felt when Claude would be on dates and not be able to hang out in the fields of Leicester County, drinking and laughing about nothing in particular.

“If you need anything, say the word.”

Claude looked as if there was a word he desperately wanted to say, but he held back as Lorenz started to stroke his shoulder. He only nodded, and Lorenz nodded back. Neither could look away even as the show started up again, and Lorenz knew he had to do something. He got up, mumbled something about needing to do an assignment, and went into his room, feeling his heart beat faster and faster. Whatever happened out there needed to get sorted out immediately, but he also had a date that next day with Maribelle. Sitting at his desk, he decided to start on his assignments, and not think about Claude or Maribelle. He’d already booked the advanced dance lessons for the two of them, and he’d make something for Claude. Yes. That would work.

* * *

As soon as that awful, awful show was over, Florina heard a knock at her door. “Eeep!” She dashed over to it, and opened it to find Lyn behind the door, a smile on her face.

“Flo! Is now a bad time?”

“Nope!” She looked at the TV, where ‘Coronation Street’ was starting. “Come on in!”

Lyn came in, taking off her Docs, and she quickly gave Florina a hug as Florina giggled. “I wanted to check on you after your date!”

“It went great!” Florina said, and Lyn ruffled her hair as she continued. “We ate our ice cream after you left, and he walked me home!”

“That’s good! Where’s Fio and Rina?”

“Shopping,” Florina sighed, flopping onto the couch. Lyn followed suit, putting her arm around Florina as she continued. “Lorenz is so niiice!”

“He seems it.” Lyn squeezed Florina closer to her, and Florina put her arm around Lyn to draw her closer. “I’m glad you like him.”

“He’s a good kisser!” Florina giggled, and Lyn brushed a hair out of her face.

“With lips as thin as his, I think you only think so because he’s your first.” Florina gave Lyn a grumpy look, and Lyn laughed. “What? It’s true!”

“He made me feel all warm… It was nice.”

Lyn gave Florina a happy look, and Florina nuzzled into Lyn. “You’re so cute, Flo.”

“Shush!” Florina put her finger to Lyn’s lips, and immediately felt a little spark travel down her hand. “Eek!”

Lyn gave Florina a look, and sighed as she pulled her closer to her. “Static electricity, perhaps?”

“Maybe…” Florina giggled, and Lyn patted her head gently. “Huh. Did you want to watch Coro?”

“It’s either this or The Bachelorette, and I don’t really like that all that much.”

Florina snorted, thinking about Lorenz watching it. “Coro it is!”

They sat there that night, and it wasn’t until Fiora and Farina came back to the flat with bags full of groceries that they noticed the two had fallen asleep on the couch, Florina lying on Lyn, Lyn holding her tight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes, for this canon Elibe is basically like the UK! Possibly a strange position to take, but I always thought of the Elibe gang having British accents (and that's probably just me too, oh well!)


	6. Maribelle's Advanced Ballroom Dancing Lesson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maribelle and Lorenz go dancing, and to a cat cafe. However, Lorenz is faced with a harsh reality over apple pie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You will be able to tell I have never been ballroom dancing in my life, and am doing this so that I can introduce Virion. You can also tell I didn't love Virion. Oh well, he made a fine father to Severa!

“On my way to the date!”

“omg ok remember to loosen up!!!! he’ll think it’s cute that you like him enough to hehe”

“Thanks Sumia, I’ll be… loose.”

Maribelle pocketed her phone and arrived at the Askrian Dance Academy at one-fourty-nine in the afternoon, hoping she’d get there before Lorenz so she could stretch and warm up. He’d asked her if she’d wanted to do a dance lesson, and she agreed, thinking that he’d be signing them up for an easy, beginner class where they could waltz circles around everyone else.

She was, needless to say, shocked when she saw he’d booked an Advanced Ballroom Dancing class. She knew how to ballroom dance. He knew how to ballroom dance. What on earth could an advanced class teach the two of them?!

She got into the changing room and quickly put on her pink athleisure gear, and waited outside the classroom for Lorenz, looking at the other people waiting for the class. There was a couple, one with blue hair and a strong jawline, and the other with brown hair and a soft face, a tall guy with blue hair, and…

“Virion,” she hissed out as she caught sight of the pompous fool standing across from her, “what are you doing here?”

“Ah, Maribelle…”‌ He gave her a smarmy smile, and folded his arms as he looked at her with an aura of condescension so strong it could make someone shrink a few inches. “I had no idea you were wanting to humiliate yourself today!”

“Well.” She stood up to her full height, crossed her arms, and raised an eyebrow at him. “After the incident at the Plegian Country Club, I had no idea you’d want to even so much as return to the concept of dancing.”

“Of course you would bring up old wounds such as that,”‌ Virion replied coldly. “I merely wanted to dance with Sully. Was that such a crime?”

“When she didn’t want to dance with you? Yes?” She gave him an incredulous look, and he sighed.

“It’s not my fault that she overreacted.”

Maribelle felt rage boiling up inside her, and felt a wave of red cross her face. “I don’t think slapping a man who’s forcing himself on someone is exactly an overreaction!” She held her arms tighter, and it wasn’t until she smelled the familiar smell of ‘Lucius No. 5’ that she relaxed and turned around. Lorenz was wearing a purple set of exercise wear, and looked thoroughly relaxed.

“Good day, Maribelle.” He looked up at Virion, nodded, and looked back to Maribelle. “I realised I may not have quite communicated the class difficulty to you correctly, but is this alright?”

“It’s perfect, I’ve been dancing since I was a child.” She could feel Virion’s indignation from behind her, and she merely smiled as she continued. “It’ll be more like a refresher for me than anything else.”

“Excellent, I was much the same.” Lorenz took her hands, kissed them, and leaned into her ear to whisper to her, “Is that man over there causing you any trouble?”

Maribelle turned to see Virion glowering at her. She turned back to Lorenz, and replied, “He’s an old classmate who I never got along with.”

“Ah… inflated sense of entitlement?”

Maribelle tried not to laugh. “Yes, in terms of money and women.” Lorenz gave an understanding nod, and pulled away as the instructor walked through the corridor to the door.

“I’m here for you,” he said, keeping his hand in one of her hands as the instructor unlocked the studio. The instructor had long purple hair, and she marvelled at the volume of it. “Shall we?”

“I would love to.” The two of them walked through the door, and set themselves up on the side of the room closest to the small windows, sunlight shining through them. Virion set himself up with the blue-haired boy, and gave Maribelle a cold look as he stretched himself out.

“Hey everyone!” The instructor waved their attention to her, and she grinned. “My name’s Camilla, and I’m going to be your dance instructor for today! This is advanced ballroom, so you should know all the basics and then some. Let’s start off with a stretch!”

The class passed without stress, as once the dancing started it became clear that Lorenz was gifted with grace when he danced, and the two of them talked as they settled into a rhythm.

“How have things been for you?” She asked him, groaning internally at the small-talking.

He smiled, and replied, “Essays, and thinking of you.” He brushed his hand across her cheek, and she felt a smile grow across her face. “How about you, my dear?”

“I’ve been working on a big assignment, so I’ve been looking into property law and the details surrounding involuntary acquisition of assets by the State.” Lorenz nodded, and she continued. “Other than that, not much has been happening, so I’m pleased you’ve invited me out to dance.”

“Oh, rest assured that the pleasure is all mine.” Lorenz’s hand rested again on her shoulder, and Camilla nodded as she walked past, going over to correct Virion’s stance. “Tell me more about property law.”

“Well…” Maribelle went into a long spiel about how Askr law under a monarchy meant that if the royalty wanted to pursue a public works project, they would be allowed to force residents to move out. There was lots of jargon, but Lorenz followed along, a smile on his face. “In Ylisse however, it’s a bit different. We operate under a theocracy under Nagaism, and thus it’s more a matter of whether the Exalt feels the divine need to intervene and take down property.”

“The Exalt?” Lorenz asked, curious. “I know you have a government which the Exalt heads, but I had no idea there was such… absolute power.”

“Chrom is a benevolent Exalt, and wouldn’t do it unless it was absolutely necessary.” She smiled, and Lorenz went up to stroke her cheek again. “I went to school with him, before he assumed the role of Exalt, and we occasionally keep in touch.”

“From what I’ve seen of him in the news, he seems quite laidback.”

“He is, but he’s also wise and intelligent.” She smirked, and Lorenz seemed to melt a little bit as she raised an eyebrow. “However, you wouldn’t be wrong in assuming he has more… base interests.”

“Such as?”‌ Lorenz was trying not to be desperate for gossip, but Maribelle smiled as she put her hand on his.

“He was a prolific drinker in high school, and now he’s… more measured, aside from his drunk texts to his best friend Robin.” They both chuckled, and Maribelle looked at him with a grin. “And how does it feel having the heir apparent to the Leicester Alliance in your apartment?”

Lorenz’s face seemed to both heat up and go pale, and he gave Maribelle a wavering smile as he paused. “Simply, he thrives on drama and microwave meals.”

“I could say the same about my roommates, Sumia and Lissa.” Lorenz nodded, seeming eager to get the focus off him, and Maribelle continued. “Sumia loves having a bit of spice in her life, and she’s often bringing around a rotating door of partners, while Lissa is more interested in knitting massive woollen sweaters.”‌

“Lissa sounds a bit calmer,” he commented, his mind seeming to be elsewhere.

“She is, but her music taste is… something. All she listens to are indie bands from Archanea, like it’s a badge of honour or something.”

“Would she perhaps be a fan of ‘Hero-King?’” Lorenz asked, his eyebrows already creasing with disgust. Maribelle laughed, and nodded. “Goddess help her, Claude puts them on whenever he wants to be melancholy, and it’s quite depressing to listen to.”

“At least it’s not ‘Wrys’… He just sounds like an old man!” Maribelle grinned, and Lorenz gave her a warm look.

“I personally prefer more baroque compositions, and orchestral works.” Maribelle nodded, and he traced circles on her cheek. “In terms of modern works, Azura has one of the finest soprano voices I’ve ever heard.”

The blue haired boy behind them seemed to stop at that, and Maribelle smiled. “I’m more partial to Manuela Casagranda, but I know she does a mixture of classical and popular.”

Lorenz winced, and Maribelle frowned until he replied, “Manuela Casagranda was my high school music teacher.”

“Oh!‌ You must be sick of hearing about her,”‌ she said comfortingly, rubbing his arm as they continued to dance.

“Well, a little bit, but at least you’re– never mind. It is quite difficult at times.” He leaned in towards her, and her heart picked up as she leaned in to meet him, before–

“Okay everyone! Let’s swap partners!” Camilla gestured to everyone to move around, and Virion made a beeline for Maribelle. Lorenz however stepped in, and before Virion could get to Maribelle he held out his hand.

“I’ll take the lady’s steps.” Virion nodded curtly, not wanting to make a scene, and Maribelle found herself with the blue haired guy.

“Hello there, I’m Maribelle.” She held her hand out for him to shake, and he took it readily.

“Good afternoon! I’m Shigure!” He seemed chipper, and as he went through the steps with Maribelle, they were able to fit into each other’s rhythm easily. She quickly took a look at Lorenz and Virion, tension building in that corner, and she turned back to Shigure.

“My apologies about Virion and I… we have some unresolved problems from when we were younger.” Shigure nodded understandingly, and she added, “Do you both often dance together?”

“My boyfriend often comes with me, but today he was busy with work so I came myself.”‌ He smiled, and looked over at Lorenz. “He looks like a good guy.”

“He is, I don’t know what I would’ve done if Virion had come for me.” She sighed, and Shigure nodded.

“Camilla would’ve stepped in. She has a zero tolerance policy for anyone not respecting boundaries… says it’s because of growing up with four siblings.”

“That’s a lot,” Maribelle said with raised eyebrows. Shigure chuckled, and nodded.

“It’s quite common for Nohr,” he commented. “Your boyfriend would fit right in there, what with all his purple.”

“They are a bit on the gothic side, aren’t they?” Maribelle and Shigure laughed with each other, and she took the time to look over at Lorenz. He’d sped up his dancing, and was giving Virion a competitive look. When his eyes fell on her watching, she made a puckering motion, and Lorenz gave her one back as Virion turned around and glared at her.

Soon enough, it was time for everyone to get back with their original partners, and Maribelle couldn’t fall into Lorenz’s arms fast enough.

“I missed you far too much,” she said, holding him close.

“And the same for you, my dear.” Lorenz stroked her hair before they got into their dancing position, and Maribelle felt her heart flutter. Every touch seemed to wind her up tighter, and she resolved to kiss him properly after the class.

Their steps were fluid, their conversation flowed perfectly, and soon the class was over. Before Lorenz could get to the desk, Maribelle dashed off and paid, and Lorenz sighed as he saw her and her gold credit card by the card machine.

“Maribelle, I insist I must pay next time.”

“No, I insist as a lady that I mustn’t take advantage of your generosity.” She gently poked his chest, and he gave her a warm look.

“As a gentleman however, I must look after you.” His hand slid under her curls, and soon he’d leaned in to kiss her. Their kiss was more passionate than any of their others, their hands staying in ‘appropriate’ places but their lips frantic. It was only upon Virion clearing his throat loudly that they parted, Maribelle giving Virion a dirty look.

“Hmph.” She turned away from him, and took Lorenz’s hand. “I need to change, but did you have any plans for us after this?”

“I did, as a matter of fact.” He smiled, and Maribelle squeezed his hand.

“I’m very excited to see what you’ve planned,” she said warmly as she headed to the changing rooms. She didn’t miss Lorenz pulling out his phone and the tell-tale sound of the ‘Bank of Askr’ notification pinging from it.

* * *

He’d taken Maribelle by the hand as she’d come out, and they walked over to a nondescript small cafe in an alleyway. Maribelle raised an eyebrow, looking at Lorenz as if to ask why, but it wasn’t until they entered when she gasped, seeing the cats inside.

“Are you allergic?” Lorenz asked, rubbing his thumb across her hand.

“Not at all…” She smiled as one of the ginger cats rubbed up against her stockings, and she leaned down to pet it. “Hello there cutie!”

Lorenz smiled and nodded at the cashier, with a red ponytail, and guided Maribelle to a plush loveseat. She sat down in it, and he sat next to her, putting his arm around her. Her heart felt warm, and she laid her head down in the crook of his neck as he lifted up a menu for her.

“Don’t worry about the prices, I’ve already got my card ready.” She sighed, and he chuckled. “Anything here that takes your fancy?”

“The dark berry hot chocolate?” She eyed it, and smiled. “They also have a selection of truffles?”

“They do,” Lorenz said, scanning the menu. “Ah, delicious…”

The cashier came up to them with a cat shaped notepad. “Hey there! What can I get you?”

Lorenz gestured to Maribelle, and she gave her a kind smile. “May I please have a large dark berry hot chocolate, a ‘Raspberry Revenge’ truffle, a ‘Black Forest’ truffle, and a ‘Cinnabon-bon’ truffle?”

“Sure sure!” She turned to Lorenz, and Lorenz smiled. 

“I would love to have a large ‘Citrus Hot Chocolate,’ and three ‘Perfect Plum’ truffles please.”

“Okay! Is that all?”

“We’ll tell you if we want any more,” Maribelle said, her hand outstretched to pet the black cat on the coffee table in front of them. “Thank you.”

“Thank you very much,” Lorenz added, and gave the cat a gentle stroke up and down. “Hello there…”

“This cat is very cute,” Maribelle commented as it nuzzled into her hand,‌ “and it loves attention!”

“Heh.” Lorenz kissed her, and looked into her eyes as his hands massaged the cat. “I must say, I enjoy giving you attention too.”

“Lorenz!” Maribelle smiled, and kissed him back, pulling away to look into his eyes. “I don’t mind receiving it, or giving it for that matter.”

“Excellent.” They kissed again, and Maribelle used her free hand to run through Lorenz’s thick purple hair. It felt so soft to the touch, and she wondered how he kept it so pretty. She gave the cat a little scratch as Lorenz deepened the kiss, and she felt warmth spread throughout her. It must’ve been first time jitters, she thought as his tongue gently rubbed against the entrance to her mouth. She opened up, letting her tongue touch his, and the way Lorenz grabbed her hair made her less concerned about her curls, and more concerned about how to kiss him back as passionately.

They parted, a strand of saliva between their lips, and Maribelle looked up at his delicately closed eyes with love. He looked so beautiful, trying to capture the moment, and she closed her eyes as she lay against him, still stroking the cat. Lorenz’s arms fell around her, and she wasn’t sure why, but his heart seemed to be racing at an impossible speed as his hands caressed her back. They stayed like that, eyes shut and at peace, for a while. The cat soon moved behind Maribelle’s legs to sit, and she used her now-free hand to touch Lorenz’s soft face. Sigh…

“Hot chocolates!” The cashier was suddenly back, and Maribelle opened her eyes to see her beaming at them both, holding two large mugs. “By the way, Nocturne is sitting behind your legs.”

“Oh!” Maribelle could feel the cat snuggling up to her, and she sighed, looking up at Lorenz, whose eyes were barely open. “Mind if I stay lying on you?”

“Of course not.” He patted her head, and Maribelle raised an eyebrow as they each got their mugs, her raising herself up on her elbows against his sides.

“I’m not a cat, you know.” Lorenz nodded, looking slightly hurt, but she smiled soon after. “Do the cats make you more affectionate?”

“It must be.” He quickly took a sip of his hot chocolate, and sighed. “Delicious.”

“And your truffles!” She’d put them on a plate, and Lorenz took the plate, putting it on his chest between himself and Maribelle. She laughed to herself, and Lorenz smiled down at her.

“Thank you very much,” he said to the cashier, and he used his free hand to take a stray curl and twirl it around his finger. “Dearest Maribelle, how is it that you look both formidable and adorable?”

“It must be the cats,” Maribelle said jokingly. Lorenz smiled, and gently stroked the side of her face. 

“Must be.” He took another drink, and Maribelle took a sip of hers, smiling.

“This is delicious… how on earth did I not know about this place?” She took a bigger sip, and soon she’d finished her mug. “By Naga, this is… brilliant.”

“I’m glad you enjoy it.” He’d put down his mug, and put his first truffle into his mouth. “I came here by accident in orientation, and found out I loved it here.”

Maribelle put her mug down and smiled. “I love it here too.” She gave him a warm smile, and took her Black Forest truffle into her mouth. She felt the cakeiness of it explode in her mouth, and she sighed as she bit through the delicious cake filling. “Mmm…”

“All of their truffles are so nice, but I’m partial to plum myself.” Lorenz looked at her pleasured expression, and chuckled. “You look how I feel.”

“I’ll try the Raspberry one next.” She took it, bit into it, and moaned as the raspberry gushed into her mouth, running over her tastebuds and into the crevices of her. “Ohh…”

Lorenz had a conflicted expression on his face, but quickly put another truffle into his mouth to hide his growing blush. Maribelle shut her eyes as the taste of raspberry seemed to overwhelm her, and she licked the raspberry from the inside of the truffle as Lorenz tried not to stare too hard, too intensely. She took the rest of the chocolate shell into her mouth, and sighed as the delicious milk chocolate melted in her mouth. She swallowed, Lorenz swallowed thickly, and she opened her eyes, smiling up at him.

“That was beyond delicious… I must say, while I do love berries, that was something else. I must try tempering some chocolate with real berries.” She gave Lorenz an uncontrolled smile, and Lorenz bit his lip as he looked down at her lips.

“There’s a bit of chocolate still on there.” He used his finger to gently rub it off, but it only smudged. “Bother.” He leaned in over the plate, and Maribelle scooted up slightly, not wanting to disturb the cat behind her, and kissed him. His kisses were methodical, trying to get the chocolate off, but they soon descended into debauchery, his mouth hungry for her taste.

It was a long time until they parted, at which point Maribelle quickly put the ‘Cinnabon-bon’ truffle in her mouth. The burst of cinnamon in her mouth coupled with the delicious candied interior and milk chocolate exterior made her mouth water, and soon she was making more indecent noises as she savoured every inch of the chocolate. Lorenz, with his final truffle in his mouth, was a lot quieter, but made the occasional hum as his fingers stroked her vibrating cheeks.

“Incredible,” she said, the last piece swallowed. “Just incredible.”

“They are delicious, aren’t they?” Lorenz eyed her, and Maribelle shifted on his body as he put his arms onto her upper back.

“They’re incredible,” she repeated, painfully aware of her limited vocabulary. “Lorenz…”

He smiled, and nodded. “Yes.”

They sat like that for a while, until Nocturne decided to walk on top of the couch and rest between Lorenz and Maribelle’s faces. They laughed, and Maribelle gave the playful feline a little scratch while Lorenz stroked its head. It was calm, peaceful, and as the orange glow of the setting sun began to fall across Lorenz’s face, Maribelle smiled.

“I might need to go now, and help my roommates with dinner.”

“That’s perfectly alright Maribelle.” Lorenz helped her sit up, and he lifted Nocturne off his chest and onto the coffee table. “Good Nocturne…”

Maribelle laughed lightly, and Lorenz smiled at her. “Did anyone else come in while we were here?”

“Not that I know of,” Lorenz said, looking over at the cashier.

“We have a benefactor!” The cashier shouted from her desk, and the two nodded.

“We should come back here,” Maribelle said warmly, and Lorenz took a second before nodding back.

“Absolutely. You still haven’t tried most of the truffles.” He took her hand, and the two of them bid the cashier goodbye, and started walking to Maribelle’s apartment.

* * *

“Oh my GOSH!” Sumia squealed, and Maribelle sighed.

“He just walked me home Sumia, there was no need to give him an entire pie…”‌ Maribelle sighed as Sumia flitted about the kitchen, preparing some lasagna. “Wasn’t that our dessert?”

“We have ice cream, and plus I think it’s a bit more important to be giving your man some food!” Sumia giggled, and Maribelle gave Sumia a look. “What? What is it?”

“Chrom called you, didn’t he.” It wasn’t a question, and judging by Sumia’s immediate beam, she was right. “What happened?”

“He’s invited me to spend the weekend at Ylisstol!” She grinned, and Maribelle squinted at her.

“Ylisstol, as in your parent’s place, or the palace?” She crossed her arms, and Sumia grinned.

“His palace!” Her movements were light around the kitchen, and Maribelle sighed.

“Is Lissa going with you?”

“Yeah! Chrom wants her to come back to see Emmeryn in… hospital, you know…” She frowned, and Maribelle nodded. It wasn’t common knowledge that Emmeryn survived her ‘fall,’ and she understood why Lissa would be going. Emmeryn was a great older sister, but she’d overworked herself as the leader of Ylisse and didn’t need the pressure of millions upon her.

“Right, so it’ll be just me.”

“You could invite over Lorenz and wear that slip you’re always talking about!” Sumia giggled, and Maribelle was about to roll her eyes when she paused.

“Hmm.”

“What was that, Maribelle?”

Maribelle looked at Sumia, and smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll just see if Lorenz wants to go on a date this weekend.”

* * *

“Maribelle’s roommate made some apple pie,” Lorenz said, putting it onto a plate and onto the coffee table, where Claude was doing his assignments before dinner. “Would you want some?”

“I’d love some.” Claude picked up the knife Lorenz put down, and cut a reasonable slice as he looked up at him. “You really lucked out with the date’s roommate stakes Lorenz.”

“I must have,” he replied slowly, looking down at Claude. Claude pretended to take the rest of the pie, and laughing, took the small slice he’d cut. Lorenz merely nodded and sat next to him, cutting himself a slice.

“Any reason you look as if there’s a giant stick up your butt?” Claude raised an eyebrow at Lorenz, and Lorenz sighed.

“I just texted Palla.” He swallowed deeply, and sighed.

“Any reason?” Claude gave him an intrigued look, and Lorenz took a bite of his pie before responding, posture tense.

“I told her I didn’t want to see her anymore.”

* * *

Palla’s heart lit up when she saw the Tinder notification from Lorenz. She’d been on a few more dates after him, but found that none of them were quite as suave as him. Even then, he seemed to have walls up, but she wanted to see him again, wanted to see the flowers with him. She walked through the botanic gardens as she opened the message and, surrounded by many beautiful green flowers, saw his message and started to cry.

“Dearest Palla, sending this message was extremely difficult, but I think that it would be best if we no longer saw each other. I don’t feel as if we have a deep connection, but I wish you the very best with your future romantic pursuits, and I’m sure that there will be a man out there who will love you the way you deserve.”

She sat down on a bench, eyes squeezing shut as her heart felt as if it would break into a million shards. A droplet went onto her phone, and she sobbed as she saw his message through blurry eyes. The kiss wasn’t enough, she clearly wasn’t beautiful enough, and why did Abel ever suggest she do this? 

There was a reason she didn’t date. It was too hard when someone would reject you. When Abel moved away, that felt like the greatest rejection of all, but this hurt as well. Abel’s grand plan to get her with someone, fallen through. What was the point if Abel wasn’t there?

Her phone buzzed, and on instinct she picked it up. “Hello?” Sniffle.

“Palla?‌ Are you alright?” Abel, thank goodness.

“Just… (sniff) got rejected.” She tried to hold back her sobs, but all she could smell was salt and flowers.

“Where are you?”

“Botanic Gardens, there’s green flowers around me.” She could hear a car starting over the phone, and she frowned. “What is it?”

“I’m on my way.”

“Aren’t you in Muspell?”

“Yeah.” There was silence, and Palla sniffled.

“That’s one hundred and forty eight miles away.”

“It doesn’t matter. You matter more.” Abel’s voice was warm, and she felt her hand grip the phone.

“It’s getting dark… Should I meet you somewhere a bit warmer?” Her jacket was warm, but it was getting darker every second, the orange light of sunset below the horizon.

“Sonia’s?”

“Okay, but how long will you be?” Palla held herself as he replied, her tears drying.

“Less than an hour if the cops don’t pull me over.” Abel laughed, and Palla gasped.

“You can’t speed!”

“I can.” He paused, and Palla felt as if there was something he wasn’t saying. “I’ll see you soon, Palla.”

“See you.” She hung up the phone, and felt her heart warming, the little bit of it that remained. At least Abel cared, she thought, and he’s going to come. She looked at the green flowers opposite her, with their tight petals in severe formations, and glanced at the nameplate below them.

Zillia.

* * *

“Goddess, that’s rough.” Claude frowned, and patted Lorenz’s back. “Any response?”

“She’s seen it.” Lorenz sighed, and took another bite. “That is all.”

Claude rubbed Lorenz’s back, and Lorenz leaned his head on Claude’s shoulder, feeling that same warm conflicted feeling he had had the previous nights. He finished his slice, and a crumb slipped from his fingers and onto Claude’s sweater. He picked it off, put it back on the plate, and listened to Claude humming.

It was peaceful, like old times. Claude would be the carefree one, and Lorenz would be weighed down with the reality of life. Of course, Lorenz knew Claude cared more than he’d ever let on, but that wasn’t something to dwell on now. He was happy, and that was good. He cut himself another slice, and let himself tune out to Claude’s hums.

“Lorenz, you ever have someone you feel really at home around?” Claude’s voice was slow, deliberate, almost rehearsed minus the wobble on ‘someone.’ Lorenz turned his head up to Claude’s, crumbs dotting his lips, and contemplated for a second.

“In a platonic sense, or a romantic sense?”

“In a… deepset, unshakeable sense.”

“You.” No question. He passed up living in a dorm to live with Claude, his best friend since childhood, for a reason– Claude made everywhere feel like home. He took another bite, and Claude smiled.

“That’s good, because…” He paused, and seemed to weigh his words in his mind before he spoke. “Because it feels like home when you’re here.”

Lorenz finished his slice and looked into Claude’s eyes, immediately both being regretful and thankful of his decision. His eyes made him question his decisions, his actions, everything he’d ever thought or done, but they made his heart feel as if it had slot into a piece of a much larger puzzle than he could ever dream of. His body fuzzed, his mind alert and foggy, and it was only as Claude’s hand traced his jaw that he felt it start to clear and mystify itself.

He wanted to say something, anything, but he wanted to be silent, keep this moment pristine, untarnished by words. He wanted Claude to touch him more, and the images of the girls he’d been dating were now hazy in his mind, even though this was his best friend, his roommate…

His mouth opened as if to speak, but nothing came out. He had no energy, caught in‌ Claude’s gaze, and almost as if he was possessed, he found himself leaning forwards, hand reaching for his best friend’s hair.

They kissed. It was immediately so much better, and so much worse than all of his other kisses. Worse, because he shouldn’t be doing it. Why shouldn’t he? He had no idea. Better, because their lips just _fit_ together. Their kiss deepened instinctively. Their lips smacked and sucked against each other, and their hands were soon all over each other. Claude’s hands pushed Lorenz’s thick mane out of his face, and soon they travelled down to his hips, now dangerously close to Claude’s. Lorenz’s hands were roaming, trying to memorise every ridge and valley of Claude’s body as they went up, then down, then everywhere.

Soon, for better or worse, Lorenz was in Claude’s lap, and they weren’t intent on parting anytime soon. He shrugged off his blazer, throwing it onto the armchair, and soon Claude’s military jacket followed suit. Their skin was burning, even through their shirts, and Lorenz knew he was desperately trying to make sense of what was happening. His head was spinning, his sophistication forgotten, and soon he was straddling Claude in an indecent fashion as their tongues raced around the tracks of each other’s lips. It was so fast, so intense, but so good…

Lorenz could feel Claude’s heart race as he pulled himself closer to him on his lap, and soon they were a tightly wound mesh, indistinguishable to each other as it became harder to feel who was who. Claude pushed Lorenz (or did Lorenz push Claude?) onto the couch, and he stripped off his graphic tee as they parted, Lorenz struggling for breath.

“Claude,‌ I don’t know if we should be doing this…” His blood was fire in his veins, his breath molten, and body an active volcano as Claude leaned in towards him again, a smile on his face.

“Is it Florina or Maribelle you’re thinking about?”

“I can’t think Claude, I just don’t know if this should be happening…” Lorenz inhaled deeply as Claude’s hands started to tug on the collar of his dress shirt.

Claude kissed his cheek, and then dismounted. “I’ll let you think then.”

Lorenz felt conflicted as Claude went into his room, not even bothering to pick up his clothing, and he sat up, his brain far too lucid for his liking. He picked up Claude’s shirt, tossed haphazardly on the pie, and inhaled. His body reacted, going fuzzy, and he sighed as he stood up and grabbed both the jacket and blazer, moving them to his room. He tried not to dwell on it as he put the pie in the fridge with a note telling Claude to leave some for him, made some Uncle Ben’s Rice, and went off to his room for an early night. Lying in bed gave him no further clarity on the matter, but one thing was for sure— he enjoyed Claude’s kisses.

And he wasn’t sure what that said about the two girls he was going out with.


	7. Florina- Gone To The Dogs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lyn's left town and left Florina with her dogs... how will Florina and Lorenz cope with a spontaneous, barking mad date?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woof woof
> 
> also yes I've been putting off chapters, this fic is fun but it's also hard to balance the girls and the Clauderenz developing :)

The next few weeks were a blur. He’d gone on two more dates with Florina between classes, one to an art museum where he bought her a mug with Van Gogh’s “Starry Night’ on it, the other to a petting zoo twenty minutes out of town (which she’d loved, and he found adorable), and three more with Maribelle, all ending at the cat cafe. Between all of them, there was a definite tension at his apartment between himself and Claude. They’d talk, eat together, and watch TV together, but they wouldn’t say much, finding their eyes on each other more than ‘The Bachelorette.’

It was only when Florina had called up Lorenz one late afternoon that there was a sudden change in his routine, whether for the better or worse he couldn’t tell.

“Lorenz!‌ I’m so sorry to call,” she squeaked on the other end as he picked up, “but Lyn had to go out of town to see her granddad, and I’m supposed to walk her dogs, but they’re so rowdy!”

“Don’t worry my dear Florina, I’ll be over there in a moment.”‌ He’d scarcely hung up the phone when Claude walked up to him and raised an eyebrow at him.

“Spotaneous date?”‌ He asked, leaning against the wall next to him as Lorenz nodded slowly.

“Essentially, she’s supposed to be walking some dogs, and she’s a bit spooked.” Claude nodded, and Lorenz crossed his arms in front of him. “Any reason why you ask?”

“So long as you’re back to see Elincia not give Innes a rose, I’m fine with it.”

It had been like this for a while. Claude would say he was alright with the dates, and then they’d both look at each other as if they were trying to work out whether the other felt bad about it. Like every time prior, Lorenz turned away first, but not before feeling an uncomfortable knot in his stomach.

“She’s relying on me. I’ll text you when the dogs are walked.”

“Hey, don’t feel rushed on my account! There’s hours until Elincia Time, so…”

The usual routine quietness as Lorenz shuffled into his overcoat, hanging by the door, and put on his boots. “I won’t then. See you Claude.”

Lorenz knew he was being brisk as he gave a short wave before leaving the apartment, and he knew Claude was pushing down some big feelings. They knew each other too well, and this was definitely to their collective detriment. He brushed off his concerns as he walked across to Lyn’s, where he picked up Florina before the petting zoo date, and knocked on the door. The immediate cacophony of barks made him jump, and he could see Florina chasing one of the dogs through the front room.

“Bad Bow-Bow!” She yelled, and Lorenz chuckled. She was far too adorable for words. “Aaah!” She got to the door, Bow-Bow having run into another room, and opened it a crack, pulling Lorenz in. “I need to put the leads on them, but they’re too excited!”

The dogs were big, tough dogs, but Lorenz saw the excitement on their faces. “They think you’re playing,” he said quietly with a nod. A dog with a white spot over its eye came up to Florina, looking excited, and Florina tried to put her arms around the dog to hold it in place when it ran off. “We might need a different approach…”

“Like what?” Florina frowned, looking at the dogs, one excitedly wagging its tail. “I have the lead, but…”

“Maybe try coaxing them over?” He got onto his knees, but the minute he locked eyes with the one with the white spot, he realised he’d made a fatal mistake. “Oh n–”

“Archer!!!” Archer bounded over to Lorenz, and knocked him onto his back, licking his face. Lorenz was frozen with concern, but he heard a small click as his lead slipped into place. “Oh, thank you Lorenz… Bad Archer, but Good Archer!” She gave the dog a scratch behind his ears, and Archer rubbed his head against her hand. “You’re so cuuute!”

Lorenz tried to tilt his head up, ignoring the very wet tongue lapping at his cheek, and gave Florina a weak smile. “Now it’s time for Bo– oh no.”

Bow-Bow was running at him, and soon any patch of his face that hadn’t been assaulted by Archer was covered in Bow-Bow’s drool. Florina clipped his lead on, and gave Lorenz a thankful look. All Lorenz could think to do was give her a weak smile before shutting his eyes and contemplating his life decisions up until that point.

“Thanks Lorenz… are you okay going for a walk with us?”

“Of course I’m okay with it.” One hand up to pat Bow-Bow, the other to wipe saliva off his brow with a handkerchief. “Shall we?”

* * *

Archer and Bow-Bow were remarkably well behaved once they got onto the footpath, and soon they were doing a loop of the suburb Lyn lived in, one block at a time. Florina could identify all of the youthful residents of the suburbs, and Lorenz saw glimpses of some people he vaguely recognised from Fodlan, like Mercedes and‌ Emile, who appeared to be staying with Annette, if the smell of cookies inside was anything to go by.

“Does Mercedes von Martriz live in that house?” Lorenz asked Florina, and she laughed.

“She does, yes!” Florina giggled, and Lorenz raised an eyebrow. “I see her a lot at the greengrocer’s, buying lots of vegetables. She always says hi to me when I see her, so that’s nice of her… How do you know her?”

“She went to high school in the north of Fodlan, so I’d see her at things like Theatre Sports and the like.” Florina giggled, and he nodded. “I was somewhat good at it, back then.”

“I never did theatre sports, but I did do a bit of tennis!” She gave him a big smile, and he returned it with interest.

“That would explain your grace,”‌ Lorenz said with a spark in his eye, “and how light you are on your feet.”

Florina blushed, and gave him an embarrassed look. “Lorenz…”

“I speak only the truth.” They rounded another corner, and Archer stopped at someone’s mailbox. “Oh goodness… do you have a… doggy bag?”

Florina burst in giggles, and Lorenz raised an eyebrow. “Oh, a pooper scooper?”

“Uh, that.” Lorenz made a disgusted expression, and Florina gave him a soft smile.

“In Elibe, a doggy bag is what you call a bag of leftover food from a restaurant. That’s why I was laughing!” Lorenz frowned, understanding, and then nodded.

“You definitely would not want Archer going in a doggy ba— Oh, there he goes.” Lorenz winced as Archer went on the mailbox, Bow-Bow snuggling up to Florina’s legs. “Well…”

Florina passed him the bag, gesturing to her leads. “Would you mind?”

Lorenz paused, feeling decidedly sick, but nodded. For Florina. “Not at all.” He took the bag, and scooped up… Archer’s mark. He quickly tied it up, and put it in a bin on the kerbside. “There we go.”

“Come on Archer!” Florina started moving again, and Lorenz caught up to her, silently resolving to wash his hands once he got home. “And thanks Lorenz… it’s kind of hard when it’s just you, and I don’t know how Lyn does it.”

“Lyn’s Amazonian in disposition,” Lorenz replied with a smile. “She’d be perfectly fine.”

“Hehe, still…” She nuzzled her head into his shoulder, and Lorenz felt a strange wave of betrayal and warmth settle inside him. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”‌ He placed a kiss to her forehead, and they kept walking.

* * *

“Now what?” Lorenz asked, sitting on Lyn’s couch with Florina. “Would you like some help with dinner?”

“Oh!‌ I don’t want to impose on you at all,”‌ Florina commented, and smiled. “But that being said, I was going to order takeaways.”

“Ah, right. After our rather chaotic walk, I could understand that.” Florina picked up her phone to start scrolling through AskrEats pages, and Lorenz looked around Lyn’s living room cautiously. It was a homely place, with various photos across the walls as well as a large tapestry with a strange language inscribed upon it, and he could spy several dog toys across the floor. “Does ‘Wo Dao’ sound good?”

“The Chinese place?”‌ Lorenz frowned, and Florina wilted slightly. It was hard to gauge her reaction, he thought, but he backtracked. “I quite like the Vietnamese place on 65th Street.”

“That’s ‘Wo Dao.’” Florina gave him a conflicted look, somewhere between worried and surprised. “Have you been there?”

“I’ve only really ordered from Peony’s Pizzeria and TacoTellius, to be honest with you, both at the behest of my roommate.” Florina nodded, and smiled.

“I’m sure you’d like the Beef Pho,” she said warmly. “Want to try it with me?” Lorenz nodded, and she tapped on her phone. “I’ve also ordered some summer rolls, in case you’re interested!”

“Ah, right…” Lorenz nodded, and felt a feeling inside gnaw at him. “What’s your bank account number?”

“Huh?” Florina looked up at him as she placed the order. “What for?”

“To pay for our meal.” Florina gave him an uncharacteristic smirk, still laced with anxiety, and Lorenz gave her a smile back.

“Florina, I insist.”

“Uh-uh.” She squared up her shoulders, and Lorenz tried not to giggle. Florina being strong was adorable, but more so was her faux-cross expression. “A lady pays!”

“Whatever you say.” He scooted along the couch towards her, and put his arm around her as she sunk into him. “What’s got you so worried?”

“Nothing,” she replied, and Lorenz nodded, knowing it was better not to pry. “It should be here in ten minutes, as they’re close by.”

“Excellent.” Lorenz turned to her, and gave her a warm grin. “You’re positively adorable, Florina.”

She blushed in response, and reached for the TV remote. “I hear that The Bachelorette’s on tonight… do you watch that?”

“I’m supposed to be back at my apartment in time to watch it with Claude,” he replied, and Florina giggled.

“I can’t imagine you watching it!”

Lorenz nodded. “Neither, but it’s the right kind of mind-numbing.” She flipped to a channel with a quiz show happening, and Lorenz chuckled as she rested back into him. “I love these sorts of shows, seeing if I know as much as the contestants do.”

“Huh,” Florina replied as they settled into a comfortable silence, watching the people on the show play. One young man named Soren was doing exceptionally well, and the other two contestants, whose names Lorenz missed, were struggling to keep up. After two fruitless rounds, Soren was clearly in the lead, until the doorbell rang and the dogs started barking.

“Aaah!” Florina jumped up, and looked at Lorenz worriedly. “Can you hold the dogs back?”

“Of course.” Easier said than done, he realised as he saw Archer by the door and Bow-Bow skating around the kitchen tiles. He ran over to Archer, picked him up, and deposited him in the kitchen, not before swearing when he realised Archer had torn his jacket slightly. “Bad Archer, look at my Almyrian jacket you silly dog,” he whispered fiercely, giving Archer a grumpy look. “Good Bow-Bow,” he said to the dog who’d crashed into Archer and was now giving Archer a dazed expression.

“Thanks Lorenz!” Florina called out as she put the takeout on the coffee table in front of the TV. “Want some?”

“Please.” He moved over, Archer and Bow-Bow following, and Florina giggled as she saw them follow him. 

“Awww! They like you!”

“They like my jacket, I think.” He sat down, and Florina passed him a plastic bowl.

“Eat up!” She handed him some utensils, and the two of them watched Soren blitz the show as their pho disappeared. Soon they were munching the summer rolls, Florina’s head on Lorenz’s chest, both content and full of food.

“Thank you Florina… that was truly delicious.”

“No worries!” She turned slightly and gave him a big grin, and Lorenz leaned into her as the two of them kissed, her mouth tasting of pho and sauces for the rolls. His hands pulled her in closer, and soon the two of them were making out ferociously. Lorenz was only vaguely aware of time existing outside of her, but he immediately pulled away as he heard the fateful words on the television.

“Last week on The Bachelorette! Elincia asks—”

“I need to go, right now.” Lorenz gave Florina a panicked look, and she nodded.

“Want a summer roll for the road?”

“Yes please.” She handed it to him, and he quickly made for the door. “I’m so sorry, see you soon?”

“I’ll text you!” As soon as she finished speaking, Lorenz quickly shucked on his shoes and fled out the door, texting Claude a thousand apologies as he munched on his summer roll. Eight point thirty eight minutes later, he burst into the apartment and practically springboarded onto the couch next to Claude.

“Sorry.” He breathed in, out, in, out, and Claude patted him on the back.

“Forgot?”

“Yeah.” He shrugged off his jacket, and pointedly did not look at Claude. “Florina ordered takeout, and we lost track of time.”

Elincia was on-screen, having a single date with a Bachelor named Cain, and as they spoke, Claude turned Lorenz’s face towards his.

“I know it was an accident, but I thought you’d stood me up.” Claude looked more somber than usual, and Lorenz felt a knot in his stomach as he nodded. “I don’t know how to handle any of this, you know.”

“The dates,” Lorenz said pointedly.

“It doesn’t even matter with who anymore.” Claude gave Lorenz a pained look, and continued. “I know that I was the one who got you onto Tinder, but I didn’t realise things would go this way.”

“That I’d find someone?”

A pause. “That I’d be jealous.”

Another pause, but a bit longer. “I don’t know what to do, Claude.” Lorenz inhaled slowly, then exhaled, feeling the weight of his worries settling on his shoulders. “Florina’s sweet, and Maribelle is so much like me, but neither of them set me off like you do.”

“Set you off?” Claude’s hands cupped his face, and Lorenz felt a light blush rising along them.

“Yes Claude, I’m sure it fuels your ego to no end to know that you are what is tying me up in knots, but it’s you.” He exhaled, and sighed. “And there’s nothing more I can do about it.”

“There is.” Claude’s face came in closer to his, and Lorenz sighed.

“Florina…”

“You’re not official with any of them.”

“But this is hurting me.” Lorenz frowned, and Claude leaned back slightly. “I don’t know what to do.”

“You should sleep on it then,” Claude said with a smile, “or kiss me.”

“I know what you want.” Lorenz raised an eyebrow at him, and Claude laughed.

“I know what you want too.” He stole a kiss, one that shot warmth through each and every one of his veins, and then let go of his face. “Your move.”

Lorenz unbuttoned the top button of his dress shirt, unbearably hot, and Claude gave him a sly smile. “Whatever I do, the sexual tension in our apartment isn’t going to lift any time soon.”

“Not when you’re undressing like that.”

“Claude.” He unbuttoned another button without thinking, and Claude moved one of their couch cushions over his crotch.

“Lorenz, unless you want to get destroyed on this couch tonight, I suggest moving off it.”

“Kicking me out?” Lorenz gave him a pleasantly quizzical look, and Claude sighed.

“No, just… needing some space.”

Lorenz took the message, standing up and grabbing his jacket for a similar reason to Claude and the cushion. “Tell me if Elincia finally votes off Franz.”

“Will do.” It took all of Lorenz’s willpower to not destroy him on the couch, and to instead go off to his room and stare at the wallpaper in discontent. Why on earth was his life so complicated, he thought to himself, and why am I feeling more warmth inside me when I’m with Claude than when I’m with Maribelle _or_ Florina? Possibly combined?


	8. Maribelle and the Art Exhibition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maribelle invites Lorenz to an art exhibition, but things quickly go south as someone recognises him as dating Florina.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew! Another update! Thanks to everyone who reads this story, it's honestly my biggest guilty pleasure in life, and I'm glad you're all enjoying this journey with me!

His stress levels flattened out over the next few days as he exchanged text messages, but it wasn’t until one of his dates with Maribelle at the Cat Cafe where she turned to him from her comfortable position in his lap with a smile.

“Are you busy tomorrow night?”

“If you’re involved, I most definitely am.” Lorenz brushed one of her curls behind her ear, and she gave him an imploring look as she replied.

“My friend Sumia’s boyfriend’s brother is having an exhibition, and I wanted to know if you wanted to come along.” She raised an eyebrow, and gave him a small grin. “Meet me at six-twenty outside the Bern Art Gallery?”

“Of course, you should know I’m an art connoseiur by now.” Lorenz gave her a teasing look, and she laughed gently as she looked up at him.

“If the Bramimond as your phone’s background didn’t let me know, I’m sure your unshakeable love of Victor’s ‘Graez’ was enough.”

“You know that I know Ignatz himself,” he replied with a grin, and Maribelle pouted her lips playfully.

“Of course you do. He’s also showing a work at the gallery currently, so we can peruse the ‘Enbarrian Landscape on a Warm Day’ if you want to.” She looked up at him, and Lorenz nodded back.

“Of course.” He gave her forehead a kiss, and Maribelle sighed happily as his hands pulled her closer to him. “Anything for you, as you already know so well.”

“Oh Lorenz,” she replied, her voice as warm as honey, and Lorenz captured her lips in a kiss before she could say any more. As much as he loved Claude, he loved the simplicity of being with Maribelle. They both had exquisite taste, intelligence to spare, and impressive looks– sex appeal was overrated, he thought as he stirred at Maribelle’s kissing skills, but being on the same level mentally was easily the most important thing.

Maribelle’s hand slid into his blazer, and he immediately felt warmth extend over his cheeks. Claude would do this, he was sure, but it shouldn’t matter, not when Maribelle was on him.

He had it bad, he thought as he fell back into Maribelle’s lips, and he didn’t know what he was supposed to do about it.

* * *

“Going out?” Claude was leaning against the countertop, about to start cooking some mince, giving Lorenz a look that made him want to go over there and get the taste of Maribelle’s peach lip balm out of his mind.

“Exhibition at Bern.” His speech had been clipped ever since their last tense discussion over The Bachelorette, and Claude hadn’t seemed to mind. That being said, Claude was clearly mulling over something, but Lorenz’s date was occupying most of his brain. That, and his latest essay.

“Have fun, I hear Ignatz and Marianne are going!” Lorenz chuckled, and Claude nodded. “I know. Marianne asked him out a few days ago, and they’re really enjoying each other’s company.”

“It was only a matter of time.” From the third grade, it was clear they only had eyes for each other, and it had been cute and painful as the two of them tried to quash their crushes. To know they’d finally done something…

“Anyway, you probably gotta go! What time are you supposed to be there?”

“Six-twenty.” Lorenz grabbed his phone off the charger, and Claude nodded.

“Have fun, don’t drink too many champagnes, tell me how the high school sweethearts are!” Claude waved, and Lorenz smiled as he opened the door.

“Of course. See you, Claude.”

The walk was uneventful, mostly because Lorenz had allowed almost half an hour to cross towns, and it was merely cloudy, as opposed to the miserable drizzle of the past few days. Once he’d made it to the Bern, he could see Marianne outside. She waved as she saw him, and he grinned as he saw her get-up. She was wearing an elaborate pink dress that coupled classy and head-turning, and he was glad he’d decided to pull out his white suit. Sure, it was a risky fashion move, but he’d stand out and look classy alongside her.

“Maribelle, my love.” He held out his hand, and Maribelle spun into his arms in a move straight out of their ballroom class. “How are you?”

“Excellent, now that you’re here.” She raised an eyebrow, and took his hand, walking towards the door. Lorenz walked alongside her, matching every single step, and smiled as he saw the small groups inside the exhibition. “There wasn’t a big showing, but I suppose that means that everyone who’s here has good taste.”

It was a sonic arts exhibition, combining music and more traditional mediums to express ideas relating to warfare, and Lorenz marveled as he heard the synthesised sounds slipping out of speakers around the room as they entered. He had been into more traditional mediums, but here, now, this was new and intriguing.

Lorenz spied Virion over by one of the pieces, and sighed. “Don’t look right.”

Maribelle looked right, and groaned. “Just avoid him, he’s not worth it.”

“Of course.” He squeezed her hand, and smiled. “You know I’m here for you though, if he tries anything, right?”

“I do.” She squeezed him back, and pecked his cheek. “You’re a true gentleman, Lorenz.”

“And you a wonderful lady.” They locked eyes, and Lorenz leaned in to kiss her. It was quite different kissing her in a public space, but he loved the tremble of her lips against his, and the warmth in his heart as they pulled away, Maribelle looking to her left.

“And there’s the man himself.” A tall ginger stood among a crowd of people hurriedly asking him questions, and Maribelle glided over as Lorenz followed. “Sumia!”

A brunette, wearing a long black dress, turned around from watching Kent, and gave Maribelle a massive grin. “Oh my gosh, you made it!”

“Well, of course I made it. I only left the apartment a few minutes after you.” The brunette didn’t seem too perturbed by Maribelle’s bluntness, and Lorenz sidled up to Maribelle. “Oh, and this is Lorenz.”

“Lorenz! Ohmigosh, so good to meet you finally!” She held out her hand, and Lorenz shook it firmly.

“Lovely to meet you Sumia,” he said warmly, a smile playing across his face. “Maribelle’s mentioned you a fair bit.”

“Eek!” She looked concerned, and Maribelle gave her a pat on the shoulder. “Good things?”

“Only good things.” Lorenz put his arm around Maribelle, and Sumia cooed.

“You’re so cute together!” She tapped the guy next to her on the arm, and he turned to her with a confused look. “Sain, Mari and Lorenz are here!”

Sain turned around, gave Maribelle a charming smile, and stopped when he saw Lorenz. “Hey… I think I’ve seen you around before. The name’s Sain.”

“Good evening Sain,” Lorenz said, trying to place the name in his head. “I know you’re already aware, but I’m Lorenz. Maybe we’re in a lecture together?”

“Maybe… do you take Interkingdom Relations?” He frowned, and Lorenz shook his head. “Darn. Maybe I’ve just seen you studying.” He turned back to Maribelle, and grinned at her warmly. “You however, I have never seen before in my life. Kinda wish you were around the apartment more whenever I was over.”

“Thanks,” Maribelle replied coolly, grabbing onto Lorenz a bit tighter, “but I’m often out with Lorenz, so that’s why.”

“Ah, right.” He gave them both a grin, before looking quickly back at Kent. “In any case, I’m just here to make sure my idiot brother doesn’t do anything embarrassing.”

“He’s not an idiot!” Sumia gave Sain a look, and he smiled.

“Only joking, your ladyship.” He pecked her cheek quickly, and squeezed her hand. “That being said, let’s talk to Kent quickly.”

“We’ll have a look around,” Maribelle replied, and Sumia grinned at them both.

“Okay, see you guys soon!”

The exhibition itself was lovely, Lorenz thought to himself, and he loved the innovation of combining music, art, and technology. Truly aweinspiring. The only thing that made it better was Maribelle’s kisses on his cheek, and his gentle kisses on her forehead.

It wasn’t until the two of them stumbled upon the snacks table when they saw Sumia and Sain again, Sumia eating the artisan snacks on the nearby tables and Sain sipping champagne as he made sure Sumia didn’t overeat. Lorenz had a strange feeling in his gut as he and Sain locked eyes, and he quickly averted them to Sumia as Maribelle started talking about the sonic aspects of the exhibitions.

Why was the name Sain so familiar? He ran back through his time in Fodlan, and couldn’t recall such a name. On The Bachelorette? That didn’t sound right… There were seven guys, and the only one with a name close to his was Silas. He wasn’t in his classes, nor had Claude mentioned him, nor had he seen him on Tinder. Palla? Nope. Florina? No— oh. Wait. He could vaguely remember Lyn mentioning Kent and Sain.

His excitement at solving the mystery first excited him, but as soon as he picked up a champagne flute from a waiter passing by, it suddenly occurred to him why Sain was avoiding eye contact with him at all costs. Florina.

“Lorenz loved the section with the Wind Valley tribes actually!” He was brought into the present by Maribelle nudging him gently, and smiling at him.

“Ah yes– The section with the electronic motion-detected wind chimes linking to the filters of the photos of Wind Tribe members.” Lorenz nodded, and Sumia gasped.

“Ohmigosh yes, that was so cool!” Sain merely nodded, and Maribelle took note of it.

“Sain, what part did you enjoy most?”

“Well, I naturally love my homeland of Elibe, and so all the sections dedicated to the military I found excellent, especially incorporating the traditional songs into the art itself.” Maribelle nodded, satisfied, and Sain turned to Lorenz. “That being said, can we have a chat Lorenz? Man to man, as it were?”

Lorenz squashed the feelings inside himself, tried not to show how pale he was feeling, and nodded. “I’ll be right back Maribelle.” He could hear Maribelle asking Sumia what was going on as he left, and Lorenz prayed that Sumia didn’t know, that Maribelle wouldn’t know. Sure, he was trying to work out his feelings towards Claude, but Maribelle… He didn’t want to get dumped by her. If she called him out in the gallery, he’d never be able to go back to another exhibition until all of the current students had either graduated or left the art world. Oh, Goddess help him…

Fear was not a common emotion for Lorenz, put it that way.

The minute Sain had cornered him next to an Archanean flag, he folded his arms and his smooth facade dropped. “The fuck you think you’re doing to Florina?”

“We aren’t official,” Lorenz said breathlessly, trying to calm himself but failing.

“Lorenz, I’m sure you know that Florina’s trusting and a bit naive when it comes to Tinder, and I’m certain that you know this would break her heart.” Sain looked furious, and Lorenz swallowed, feeling every muscle in his body tell him to run. “She thinks that you guys _are_ official, that you guys _are_ dating, that you being there for her means that you want to be with her long-term.”

“I…” Lorenz paused, his heart threatening to pummel a hole through his chest. He had to say something, fast. “It’s just her and Maribelle.” The lie ached, and as soon as Sain’s eyebrow raised, he knew he’d messed up. Why not stick to a truth?

“Yeah, and I’m the Marquess of Ostia.” He glared at Lorenz, and Lorenz could feel drops of sweat building up under his sleeves. “Listen, you need to tell Florina, or break things off. This is only going to get worse with time.”

Lorenz thought back to Palla, and then to Florina. He couldn’t do that to her. He just couldn’t. “And how would you suggest I do so?”

“I don’t know, you’re the one who’s going out with her!” Lorenz winced at his volume, and looked over to see Maribelle and Sumia chattering away, unaware. Phew. However, Virion cast an eye in their direction, and Lorenz felt a wave of bile come up.

“Right. I’ll sort this. Don’t you worry.” Lorenz nodded, and Sain nodded back curtly.

“I’d better reiterate that you’re her first boyfriend, whether official or not, and if you fuck things up she’s never going to forget it.” Sain started walking back to Sumia, and Lorenz followed, willing his legs to work while sipping his champagne in the hopes his fears would alleviate.

“Sain!” Sumia gave him a hug, and Maribelle pulled Lorenz over to her worriedly.

“You look awfully unwell,” Maribelle noted, and Lorenz nodded.

“Must’ve been something in the dinner I ate before I came here.” A lie, but what difference would it make? 

“Goodness, should I walk you home?” Sumia and Sain walked over to Kent, and Lorenz shook his head.

“No, I can manage. I’m sorry.” He looked at her, and willed that apology to cover everything— Florina, Palla, but mostly Claude.

“You must be unwell if you’re apologising.” Maribelle took his flute, brought out a handkerchief, and wiped his forehead, frowning. “Please text me once you get home, alright?”

“Of course. Farewell, my love.” He blew her a kiss, not trusting his abilities to kiss with so much on his mind, and Maribelle giggled.

“Farewell, my darling.”

* * *

He’d sprinted back home, the cloudy dusk only serving to lower his mood. Swear words ricocheted around his head like small missiles, and guilt filled him up like one of those champagne flutes.

“Idiot.” He got home, saw Claude doing his assignment on the kitchen table, and sighed as he walked towards his room.

“You okay?” Lorenz shook his head and shut the door to his room, only barely hearing Claude answer, “That’s okay! I’m here for you!”

He stripped down to his silk briefs, and flopped onto his bed before texting Maribelle to say he’d made it home, and that he was going to sleep. He threw his phone onto the pile his suit made on the ground, and buried his face into his pillow. Idiot. Stupid idiot.

He was faced with a few choices, he realised at this point in time. They all felt awful and horrible, but the threat of Sain’s knowledge hung over him like an anvil, waiting to drop on him.

The first option was dumping Florina, going out with Maribelle, and telling Claude they had to stay friends. He sighed, thinking about Florina bursting into tears, and felt a sad tug in his heart. No, he couldn’t.

The second was to dump Maribelle, who’d likely hear about the two-timing soon, and go out with Florina. But his heart again tugged at him, unhappy at the prospect of losing someone so utterly like him. Maribelle was rare, a true treasure, and while he didn’t feel the same lust for her that he did for Claude, he didn’t want to lose her. That being said, he wasn’t trying to dump Florina for lack of attraction, but… He groaned, flipping onto his back. He had romantic feelings for Florina, something that half didn’t feel like romance and half admiration for Maribelle, and he desperately wanted to go out and kiss Claude.

Bother.

He slid out of bed to grab his phone, and saw a text from Maribelle on the home screen.

“Stay safe, my love. Sumia and Sain say it was lovely to meet you, and they hope to see you again soon.”

Like hell he did. He put his phone down again, knowing he definitely couldn’t bring himself to do anything at that moment, and crawled back into bed, drawing the covers over himself. He’d sleep on this one. What more could he do?

* * *

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” A green haired man said to his equally green-haired partner, both looking at a traditional Sacaean tapestry at the exhibition. The conversations had lulled, everyone ready to hear Kent’s speech, but the two wanted to look around more.

“Truly.” Her eyes were bright, and every time her partner looked at her, her heart soared. Seeing her ex there that night felt painful, but knowing her true love was by her side felt so much better.

“Ah, pardon me.” A tall man with a luscious mane of hair appeared behind the two of them, and the lady jumped. Kent began to start his speech through the microphone, and all anyone could hear in the room was his grateful speech to all those who had shown up that night. The tall man spoke to the green haired couple some more, and they nodded, understanding his meaning. As Kent explained his inspirations, the tall man looked more and more pleased, until Kent had finished speaking to thunderous applause, and appeared to be leaving. The volume lulled down to a reasonable level, and his voice was finally audible to those further away.

“And who are you, again?”

“Palla.” The smile that graced the man’s face could not be wider.


	9. Florina at the Zoo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lorenz finds his feelings for Claude intensifying, and after a conflicted date with Florina he finds himself in a tumultuous position.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Debating whether to move this fic up to an M rating thanks to some swear words and allusions to arousal, but all in all I'm enjoying writing this fic! It really is my guilty pleasure, hehe :)

“Good morning! Are you feeling better?”

Lorenz, still in his briefs from the night before, squinted at his phone screen and typed a groggy response. “Yes, must’ve been Claude’s famous cabbage bowl.” Lies, but she’d never know. Claude hated cabbage.

“Oh dear… want me to come over and look after you today?”

“Please don’t worry about it, my love.” Lorenz stood up, and took stock of himself. His suit was still crumpled on the floor to the side of his bed, there were raindrops pelting his window, and he felt as if a bus had run over him. He quickly put on a dress shirt, and picked up his suit to take it to the ironing board in the lounge. If he could do one thing, it would be fixing that small mess. His bigger messes could wait.

“Alright Lorenz. Rest, and stay well.” He nodded as he read it, and fired back a quick response.

“I shall. You too :-)”

He flipped the light switch, pulled out the ironing board from the wall, and switched on the iron as he looked over the lounge. A clock on the wall read “7:26am,” and Lorenz sighed. Claude wouldn’t be awake, but even then, would he talk to Claude about this? He didn’t have much in the way of confidants, and even his high school friends would be a bit biased. Hilda would encourage him to follow his heart and bang Claude, Leonie would tell him to pull his head out of his butt and ask out Claude, and Lysithea would probably walk off in a huff, saying to date Claude. Sigh.

He finished up his dress shirt, and got onto the trousers. Why did he choose to wear his white suit, he asked himself, knowing full well that every crease would show up so clearly? He didn’t mind ironing in most situations, but as his parents would be at pains to tell him, he needed to make sure he looked impeccable at all times. He looked at his hairy legs, and sighed. If Maribelle walked in, what would she think? It was its own walk of shame, he thought to himself, and it hurt a bit thinking that she’d likely look upon his spider-like legs with a degree of disgust. Putting the trousers on the side of the board, he got started on the blazer and all its finicky folds. 

“You’re up.” Before Lorenz could react, Claude appeared in the lounge, en route to the coffee machine in the kitchen. “Ironing.”

Lorenz looked down at his blazer, trying to focus on his ironing. “I am up, yes.” He waited until Claude had gone into the kitchen before whizzing through the rest of it, and putting it on the end of the board. It looked fine; not impeccable, but good enough that most people would be more focused on the colour than the one wrinkle by the lapel. Turning off the iron, he turned to Claude, already watching him over the counter top.

“Bad date?” Lorenz could sense the wishfulness in his voice, the hope that Lorenz had dumped her and decided to go out with him, but he couldn’t find it in himself to answer. It _was_ a bad date, but not for the right reasons.

“Isn’t your first lecture at ten?” He picked up his suit and pulled up the board, unknowingly showing Claude exactly what bottoms he had on.

“Came to admire the view, that’s all.” Lorenz gave Claude a tired look, and he jumped slightly. “Hey, I’m not the one who went out to do their ironing in their boxers.”

“Briefs. Wait.” Lorenz looked down, and cringed as he remembered his spider-like legs were on full display. “Goddess.”

“You look cute, don’t worry.” Claude let the steam loose from the machine as he came over into the lounge, coffee in hand. “I wouldn’t mind if you did it more often.”

“Well.” Lorenz paused, and thought to himself. Maribelle would _not_ react that way, nor would her reaction send the same sort of excitement up his body. “I can… try, maybe.”

“Try all you want, I won’t complain.” Claude checked him out rather overtly, and Lorenz could feel a part of him reacting as he positioned his suit in front of him to hide it. “Anyway, class at eight again?”

“Yes, and I’ll probably have to start moving soon.” He looked up at the clock, and grimaced. “I’ll be back for lunch, have fun doing your assignments.”

“Heh, I’ll try.” Lorenz started walking, and he could hear Claude whistle as he entered his room. “Nice ass.”

“Thanks, I grew it myself.” He shut the door, and suddenly realised what he’d said when Claude started laughing through the door. “That is to say, thank you!”

“I get it, I get it…” Claude moved down to his room, and Lorenz sighed, leaning against his door as he inhaled and exhaled slowly. He thought back to all his dates with Florina, Maribelle, and Palla, but in none of them did he get as turned on as he was at that moment. He wasn’t even that aroused, he thought as he hung up his suit, and that was surely a bad sign. If he could get more aroused, and the girls weren’t doing it for him, then… what then?

* * *

He’d invited Florina to the zoo for that night, and it was apparent as soon as she came up to him in a pretty white dress that she was miles more virginal than his slut of a roommate. She’d spied him across the carpark with bright eyes and a big wave, and Sain’s voice came into his mind with various threats as he smiled back with a wave of his own. Once she’d gotten close enough, he gave her a hug, and she giggled as he took her into his arms.

“You’re so affectionate tonight Lorenz… what happened?”

A realisation that I might not have as many feelings for you as I have for my roommate. “You look beautiful, my dear.”

Her blush alone was enough to cast any thoughts of Claude from his mind, and her fingers interlacing his made him feel warm. In any case, she was a lovely reprieve from the madness that was his life. They entered the zoo, spirits high, and walked around the exhibits as the sun cast a warm golden glow over all of them.

“Look! A lion!” Florina pointed to the furry beast in its large enclosure, and Lorenz smirked.

“I much prefer deer, as a matter of fact, but he is very majestic.” Florina squeezed his hand, and cooed.

“His paws look so soft! I wish I could give him a hug, just like a cat!”

Lorenz decided to not mention that the lion would eat her before she could even get close enough to pet it, and looked over at the lionness coming up behind it. “What grace!”

“They’re like big, golden cats…” Florina gazed at the lions, and Lorenz felt a gentle smile cross his face. She was right in some respects, as the lions did look quite soft and snuggly, but their claws were downright terrifying in size. “Oh! A zebra!”

Not in the same exhibit, thank goodness, but in the next one along, three zebras crossed over the exhibit. “They’re very elegant,” Lorenz noted as they trotted along, heads swishing from side to side, “quite like horses.”

“They are, kind of!” Florina took his hand and pulled him over to the next exhibit, and they progressed through the zoo, Florina cooing over the animals and Lorenz feeling a lightness in his heart with each wave of excitement.

The flamingos were ‘so so pink!’ in contrast to the ‘kind of scary’ baboons, and the elephants ‘look like my elbows if I don’t moisturise,’ much to Lorenz’s amusement.

“Your elbows are beautiful.” He stroked down her arms, and a blush crept onto her cheeks as he circled her elbow. “In fact, all of you is so beautiful.”

“You’re so kind Lorenz…” They went around more exhibits, eventually moving to the aquarium, and Lorenz chuckled as Florina spotted the penguins with a squee. “Aaah! Penguins!”

“Yes, there they are.” As Florina whipped out her phone to take a photo, Lorenz sat down on a rock bench next to the exhibit and watched her run around. She was so wholesome, talking to the penguins and telling them how cute they were, and he felt a knot form in his stomach. This sweet, wholehearted girl would be crushed if she knew that Lorenz was tossing up whether to continue dating her or not, and it felt a bitter feeling in his gut. He couldn’t continue like this.

Palla was a spur of the moment decision, an idea he formed just to give himself a sense of control over the situation with Claude. She was lovely, but she wasn’t Claude. Florina however was so utterly different to everyone else in his life, and he knew that no matter what happened, either with Sain telling her the whole sordid truth about himself and Maribelle or with him breaking things off with her, she would be crestfallen.

She was still animatedly talking to the penguins, and he sighed. He couldn’t talk to her about it here, and ruin penguins for her, but he couldn’t stand the idea full stop if he was being honest. Maribelle, yes, he could, but she would likely be less hurt than Florina. She was mature, whereas Florina was still growing in her independence. It wasn’t fair to lead her on, but to dump her would be crushing.

His mind was still caught up in heavy thoughts when she came back over to him, a massive grin across her face. “They’re so cute Lorenz! Wait… are you okay?” She sat down next to him, putting her arm around him, and Lorenz felt the knot inside him increase tenfold.

“Just feeling a sudden wave of nausea,” he said in his best comforting voice, and Florina nodded. “Might need to find a bathroom soon.”

“Of course!” They sat together, Lorenz ruminating over difficult thoughts and Florina showing him her photos excitedly, until an idea occurred to him. Oh, Goddess help him…

Eleven minutes later, he’d locked himself inside a bathroom stall outside the sealife exhibits, ringing Claude. He picked up quickly, and before he could speak Lorenz blurted out, “Claude, help. I need to break things off with Florina.”

“Whoa whoa whoa! What’s happened?”

“I can’t do it, not with… you know…” Lorenz inhaled nervously, and Claude seemed to pause on the other end. “Just… help me, Claude.”

“Is this about Maribelle?”

“No,” Lorenz answered a little bit too quickly. There was a telling silence on the other end, and then a sigh.

“Listen, I think you need to think things through before making that kind of a decision. We can talk once you get home.”

“Okay.” Lorenz brushed the sweat off his brow, and nodded. “Okay. Talk to you once I’m home.”

“See you.” Claude’s voice felt heavy in his ear as he hung up the phone, and he steeled himself. Right. He’d see this out. Claude had a point after all, he couldn’t be too hasty, and he should talk over it with the man who was causing him so much grief.

He exited the stall, looking pale, and Florina grinned when she saw him. “Feeling better?”

“Yes, definitely.” He smiled at her as honestly as he could, and she mirrored his positivity as well as that small degree of apprehension. “I’ll just need to take it easy.”

“Okay!” Her face lifted, and she took his hand as they went off to the aviary. He was safe…

* * *

Lorenz dropped Florina off at Lyn’s, and as he kissed her good night he could hear footsteps coming from behind her. Lyn, most likely. He parted, enjoying the sweet pink of Florina’s lips, and gave her a warm look.

“Good night, my darling.” He bowed, and Florina giggled.

“Night Lorenz, sweet dreams!” She waved, and he nodded with a smile as she shut the door behind her. He knew his next stop was the apartment, and in the quiet of the night he made his way back home. He turned back one last time before setting out though, and through Lyn’s front window he could see Lyn looking seriously at Florina. Must’ve broken curfew, Lorenz thought as he turned away. Besides, Claude was waiting, and while he was certain Florina would be okay he was more concerned about his roommate back home.

“Lorenz.” Claude’s voice was warm when he entered the apartment, and he instantly felt at ease. “You alright?” He turned to the kitchen to see Claude with two bowls of soup with bread on the side.

“Can we talk?”

“Of course.” Claude moved himself to the coffee table, and Lorenz followed, putting his blazer on the sofa next to him. Claude took the opposite end of the sofa, and handed Lorenz a bowl. The air was silent between them for a moment, until he added, “Start whenever you’re ready.”

Lorenz inhaled, and then spoke. “Claude, I’ve found that my feelings for you as of late have been overwhelming to say the least.” Claude nodded, a smile at the edges of his lips, and he continued. “I don’t know what to do, as I want to let the girls down easily, as while I enjoy their company they don’t set me as alight as you do.” His face was both pale and pink, and he quickly took a bite of bread he’d dipped in the soup. “I…” He paused, feeling his nerves return as he took in the sight of Claude, eating his soup, looking nonplussed. “You know.”

“Tell me, Lorenz.” Claude seemed to know something he didn’t, and he nodded.

He inhaled, then paused. He had to be eloquent, but he wanted to be genuine. He planned his words in his head, but gave up as they refused to come in an elegant heap. “I can’t… be with them without guilt, especially when I know that you’re the one I want to be with.” Claude nodded, far too calm, and Lorenz felt a burst of anger inside him. “And I suppose that this is all in a day’s work for you, Claude, judging by your reaction.”

“It was kind of obvious when you were ironing this morning,” Claude noted, “and it became very obvious when you called me today, but that’s not the point.” Lorenz took a big spoonful of soup, and Claude seemed to pause, weighing up his words. “I think dumping them is the best idea then, if you’re not feeling it.”

“Hmm.” Lorenz paused, worry written across his face, and Claude noticed.

“Not saying you have to do it now, of course, but like…” He shrugged, and Lorenz frowned.

“I thought you’d be a little more invested in this, given that it’s you who’s tearing me apart.”

Claude laughed, and gave Lorenz a gentle look. “I am.”

“Prove it.” Lorenz took another spoonful of soup, and Claude nodded.

“I fell for you by surprise, Lorenz, and it wasn’t until after one of your dates that I realised that if I didn’t act, you were going to never see me as a possible partner.” Lorenz nodded, connecting the dots in his head, and Claude grinned. “And then, of course, I didn’t want you to go. I just wanted you here, with me.”

“And not just someone to watch The Bachelor with.”

“No, Lorenz, you mean so much more to me than that.”

There was a heavy tension in the air as the two continued eating their soup, and soon Lorenz noticed a drop left on the side of Claude’s mouth. He put his soup down, took a bite of bread before also putting that down, and then moved across the couch, kneeing his jacket. Before Claude could react, Lorenz leaned in and kissed the soup off his mouth. He pulled away, but Claude deftly put his food aside and pulled him in again, his lips imploring his to move deeper. Their heads tilted to either side, and Lorenz could feel his body catching alight as his tongue met with Claude’s. Claude knew what he was doing, he noticed, and he knew exactly how to get Lorenz in a significant state of arousal. His hands were soon in his hair, and it became hard to tell where he ended and his roommate began. He pulled away for a moment, only for Claude to pull him back in again, hungry for more. 

He’d never made out like this before, and as Claude’s hips rolled against his, he felt the most intoxicating wave of arousal wash over him. Time seemed to both stagnate and rush past at a strange pace, as the numbers on the clock moved from the late PM to the early AM.

Soon, Lorenz’s shirt found its way on top of his jacket, and Claude’s graphic tee was halfway up his body when his phone buzzed. “Sorry,” Lorenz whispered as he pulled it out of his pocket, noticing it was from Maribelle. “Good grief.”

“Feeling better? x”

“Much better, I think having such a relaxed day was good for my health.” He looked up at Claude, and Claude nodded.

“Are you going to tell her?”

“Soon. She’s replying right now.” The bubbles with the dots in them disappeared, then reappeared. “Goddess, I feel so nervous…”

“It’s fine, she’s just going to be worried after your antics last night.”

Lorenz felt a deep sense of unease in his stomach, and he knew that something wasn’t right.

“That’s good to know that the zoo was so good for your health.”

“Yes, it definitely wa—” Lorenz paused as he typed, and felt the unease morph into a deepset terror.

“Oh fuck,” he said out loud, and Claude peered over his screen.

“What’s wrong?”

“She knows. She knows.” Lorenz moved off of Claude, and deleted his response. His phone displayed the bubble next to her texts, and he realised she was typing again. “She knows I was at the zoo with Florina.”

“You guys aren’t official, relax.”

“I never told her I wasn’t seeing other people.”

The bubble disappeared, then reappeared, and then was replaced with a message. “Virion couldn’t keep it quiet when he knew I was getting hurt. He’s a true gentleman, unlike _someone_ I know.”

“Virion? Her sworn enemy?” Lorenz squinted at the screen in disbelief, and Claude frowned.

“Shit, what did he do?”

The bubble reappeared, and Lorenz slipped his shirt on, the mood lost. “Told Maribelle I was dating other people. But how would he know?” He paused, and then remembered how Sain had yelled at him the night before, in the vicinity of Virion… “Actually, scrap that, I think I know.”

“Lorenz, don’t panic.” Claude laid a hand on his shoulder, and gently massaged it. “You were wanting to break things off, right? This should be good news.”

“I was hoping we could be friends… she’s one of the only people like me that I’ve ever met…” Lorenz’s hopes were falling, and he sweated as the bubble kept appearing and reappearing. “Agh…”

Claude kept stroking his shoulder until the text arrived, longer than the other ones.

“Of course, I didn’t believe him until I talked to Sumia and Sain about it, and Sain revealed that you’d been seeing this girl called Florina! And there’s a Palla, so now I’m curious as to how many girls you’ve been cheating on me with!” An angry emoji, and the rest of Lorenz’s despair followed.

“She knows about Palla?” Lorenz’s stomach dropped, and Claude frowned.

“Didn’t you dump her weeks ago?”

“Yes.” He formulated a reply, and felt sick as he sent it.

“If you would, I would wish to talk over things with you in person so that you may hear my side of the story.” Send.

Almost instantly, he had a response. “Knock knock.”

A knock came from the door, and Claude got up, before Lorenz pulled him down. “Fuck. Maribelle just texted me ‘knock knock.’”

“You can’t put it off.” Claude frowned, and picked up his bowl. “I’ll be in my room if you need me.”

“Claude, no—”

“Trust me Lorenz, this is a mess already, and you don’t need your feelings for me complicating it.” While Lorenz suspected it might have something more to do with the fierce knocks that followed, he nodded as he buttoned up his shirt and went over to the door. Steeling himself, he opened the door, and felt his stomach drop as three familiar visages greeted him.

Maribelle, eyes like fire, was at the front of the group wearing her pink riding gear and brandishing a pink parasol even though it was the early morning. He felt terror, and gripped the doorknob like a life preserver as she eyed him up disparagingly. Florina was hidden slightly behind her, and Lorenz could tell even from where he was that she’d been crying up a storm, and the fact filled him with despair. He hadn’t wanted to hurt her, but here she was, clearly very torn up by his actions. And Palla, dear Palla, was standing behind them both very maternally, looking somewhere between disappointed and betrayed. How she’d found out was beyond him, but what could he do? He could only look at her and send her the strongest mental apologies he could muster.

“We need to talk,” Maribelle said ferociously, and Florina nodded, body trembling. Palla stood behind the two of them, arms crossed, eyes flitting to the right every so often as if to check someone was still there.

“Yes, come in.” As the three women came in, Lorenz knew he was in for the biggest grilling of his life, and he completely deserved it.


End file.
